Shades of Blue
by TimeTravelFreak
Summary: Slash/Yaoi - After meeting as November 11 and BK-201 they meet again - only this time as Jack Simon and Li Shengshun and both of their lives change more than they thought possible.
1. Chapter 1

Shades of Blue

Pairing: November 11/Hei

Time line: AU after episode 12, just after Hei's mission in the PANDORA-research-centre.

Disclaimer: Nothing belongs to me, I only use the characters to satisfy the voices in my head.

A/N: So, yeah, this is my very first real story. While watching the anime, I thought that it was a pity that Hei and November didn't meet properly, so this little idea showed up in my head and really didn't want to leave…

I'm really slow with my updates, but the chapters are long, so I hope that makes up for it.

Also, since I'm crappy at plots, I simply concentrate on getting Hei and November through the series relatively unscathed and most of all alive. (Though I guarantee nothing).

If you notice any spelling or grammar mistakes or mistakes in general, please tell me and I'll fix it!

This story is dedicated to Shinrabanshô, since she encouraged me and really helped me with the finer points of characterisations and details. I also recommend her stories!

* * *

The first time they'd met face to face had been a coincidence.

Hei had just finished a job and had been looking for something to eat when he'd seen the other man and Kirihara-san. He had immediately recognized the blonde Contractor who could give him a run for his money when they fought.

After an exhausting mission and having to endure Huang's nagging, Hei really hadn't been in the mood to deal with an overly curious police officer and the one who had killed Carmine, so he'd kept his head down and hoped that Kirihara-san wouldn't see him. She always wanted to talk to him when she did.

To his chagrin he seemed to have used up all of his luck on his mission, so he'd only barely been able to keep from flinching when he'd heard the woman call his name.

Sighing inwardly he had turned around, plastered a tired but happy smile on his face and put surprise into his voice as he greeted her.

"Kirihara-san! It's nice to see you. How are you?"

The detective had smiled back at him while blushing slightly.

"I'm fine Li-kun, and how are you? You seem tired."

Hei had nodded while smiling and explained that he had just finished at his workplace and was looking for something to eat.

"And you? Are you out on a date?" He'd known that she wasn't, but teasing her had been revenge for bothering him and even if he disliked it, it had been a good opportunity to gather information about November 11.

"A date? No way, we're just colleagues!"

She had been blushing furiously and taken several steps away from the blonde, waving her hands frantically to emphasise her denial.

Hei had arched his eyebrows, wondering just why the woman seemed that horrified about his 'assumption'. The Brit had smirked, openly amused about Kirihara's rather violent reaction, which had made Misaki glare at him angrily.

The assassin had been too tired to try and figure out why the older woman had reacted that strangely and decided to write it off as her being embarrassed until he was awake enough to think about it properly.

It was quite obvious that she was quite modest and self-conscious – she didn't wear contacts, wore little make up and wore a business suit that, while not too big or too small, didn't accentuate her features.

He had remembered the Chinese dress that she had worn when they had met the first time (the occasion where she had asked about Shinoda Chiaki didn't really count as meeting).

It had looked good on her and while he really didn't like her that way, he could appreciate an attractive person.

"You know, we were looking for something to eat too, would you like to join us?"

The question had caught his attention and he had been quite unhappy about the dilemma it had brought with it:

On one hand he'd have loved to refuse the offer, but on the other hand, refusing the invitation would have been impolite, so Hei had had no choice but to accept if he wanted Kirihara-san to stay fond of him.

So he had nodded again and cheerfully accepted. He looked at November –who had been watching them quietly – and introduced himself.

"Good evening, I'm Li Shengshun. I hope I'm not intruding."

The obviously older man had just smiled, shaken his head and introduced himself after reassuring the younger one that it was always wonderful to meet new people.

The alias the Brit had used had been Jack Simon, Hei remembered.

The three of them had gone to a ramen-stand where they had eaten, laughed and talked.

Hei had pretended to be a naive student who hadn't just come back from a mission where he'd killed 3 people to get an item that the syndicate was interested in, Kirihara-san had relaxed and pretended that she hadn't been called to a crime-scene where she had been unable to find any clues to BK-201's identity.

November 11, or Jack Simon, had been his usual self, completely carefree and not at all bothered by the lack of progress made by the police with 'Mr. 201BK' and the syndicate.

When he had noticed that, Hei had, not for the first time, wished to be either a 'normal' Contractor, or to be back the way he had been before the incident in South America.

The Chinese man hated the way he was at the complete mercy of his emotions – before the Heaven's Gate had disappeared he had been calm, stoic and unfeeling – a lot like a Contractor – and the only person he had been able to feel something for had been his sister Pai.

After losing his sister, Hei had also lost his unshakeable calm and his actions had started to be more and more influenced by his feelings.

Another customer had arrived at the ramen-stand and reminded Hei where he was and what he was doing – it wasn't a good idea for a hunted criminal to let his guard down when he ate dinner with people who could arrest him, so he had jerked himself out of his musings, lest his carefully constructed mask shattered.

Neither Misaki-san (she insisted that he called her that) nor November 11 seemed to have noticed his lack of participation in the conversation, but Hei felt the MI6 agent's eyes on him when the Brit thought he wasn't paying attention.

Unnerved by Jack's staring, Hei had excused himself as soon as he'd been able to, hoping that he wouldn't have to deal with the two of them again anytime soon.

* * *

Slowly Hei opened his eyes, wondering what had woken him up. He got his answer, when he heard the sound of claws scratching against wood and glass. Hastily the assassin threw off his covers and hurried to the window to let Mao in before the man-turned-cat damaged the windows.

Hei really didn't want to deal with his landlady when she was angry and he doubted that Mao had the necessary pocket change to pay for repairs – which meant that the blue eyed man would have to pick up the bill.

The assassin promised himself that if it came to that, he'd use Mao as ingredient for a dish and serve him to the old woman.

The Contractor couldn't help but smirk at the thought, which made Mao look at him warily.

"I just came to tell you that there won't be any missions for a while. The fact that an important research material vanished from PANDORA despite their tight security put the secret agencies all over the world on edge, so we got the order to lay low for a while."

The man who was also called Black Reaper nodded. It made sense that people would be upset about the loss of the meteor shard and future missions would probably get tougher with all the security that the paranoid people, who owned things from the gate, added.

"Thanks you for telling me. By the way," the assassin's smirk vanished and his face returned to his usual empty, apathetic expression. "Do not, under any circumstances, damage the windows. Is that clear?" His voice was toneless and cool and Hei's eyes promised retribution should the warning not be heeded.

Mao's eyes widened slightly, but the cat seemed to be more intrigued than afraid, much to the dark haired man's chagrin.

The body-snatcher didn't really want to anger the Black Reaper, though he was always interested in the other man's reactions, so he nodded, not wanting to get on Hei's bad side.

_After all if he's mad at me, I can't really study him anymore…_

The Chinese man slid Li Shengshun's usual expression of naivety back across his features, satisfied that, while he hadn't really gotten the reaction he had wanted, his colleague wouldn't get him in trouble. His eyes followed the other Contractor's form as the feline left, the small body quickly leaving his range of vision.

Tiredly Hei let his eyes wander around the street, as he thought back to the previous evening, that he had spent with Misaki-san and November 11.

He remembered the older man's stare and an unsettling feeling settled itself in his gut – he had grown to trust his instincts and over the years and they rarely let him down.

Ruthlessly the Contractor shoved the thought of – _blonde hair, amber eyes, a mouth curving into a mischievous smile, bright light, the pain of betrayal_ – past experiences out of his mind and concentrated on 'Jack Simon'.

Unfortunately most of his memories of the other man weren't positive and the attitude November 11 had shown him when they had fought, just after the blonde had killed Carmine, made it difficult for the assassin to form an objective opinion of the man.

What he knew of the Brit was inconsistent and didn't really make any sense, since it seemed to totally oppose Hei's other experiences with Contractors and agents.

Contractors were known to completely disregard their feelings, and yet it was obvious that Jack enjoyed indulging his whims, even if they got him into trouble and another one of his kind would have acted more rationally.

Another thing was that most people who were part of a contract were solitary creatures, only being part of a group for the sake of reaching their goals –they didn't form any attachments.

When he thought that, Hei couldn't help but think back to the almost affectionate look that had crossed November's face last night when the man had talked about his team-mates.

Both of these characteristics were obviously an integral part of the Brit's being, but the assassin also remembered the look in the blonde's eyes when they had fought.

_The power to freeze things – it really fits him well,_ the Black Reaper couldn't help but think, as he recalled the way these orbs had stared at him – as blue and as cold as the ice that the blonde was capable of creating.

A little frustrated that he couldn't say more about the man, Hei started to turn from the window to go and make breakfast when something caught his eye – or rather when someone caught his eye.

Stunned and incredulous, the Chinese man stared at the man he had just been thinking about. He watched as November looked at a piece of paper that was held between his fingers before looking at the house numbers around him and could feel the bad hunch he'd had the whole morning turn into a dull ache.

When the assassin noticed that the MI6 agent walked towards his house, he almost felt sick, but managed to push the feeling away.

_Maybe he wants to visit someone else and doesn't know that I live __around here too._

It was a hopeful thought, but the closer Jack got, the more improbable it seemed and when he saw that the blonde walked up to the landlady that was taking out her trash, all hope was lost.

Sighing quietly, Hei closed the window, quickly threw on some clothes and walked to the kitchen to make himself breakfast, waiting for the sound of somebody knocking on his door.

As he had expected, he heard the sound and as expected it was November who stood in front of him, waiting to be let in.

The Chinese man smiled a surprised smile and greeted the older one cheerfully, while inwardly he wanted nothing more than to slam his door into the Brit's face.

"Good morning Shengshun! I apologize for arriving here this early, but after yesterday I wanted to talk to you about something."

The older Contractor smiled charmingly and Hei felt an incredible wave of loathing well up inside of him.

The night before he had been too tired and exhausted to pay attention to it, but now he couldn't help but recall that this was the one who had killed Havoc.

When they had worked together, he and Carmine hadn't really gotten along – the red-headed woman's remuneration had always disgusted him, because he was quite fond of children. He had killed innocents before, but the death of kids always left him with a hollow ache in his chest.

Despite their differences, though, they had been comrades and had trusted the other to watch their back.

Now, as he looked at the Brit, all he could think about was the anguish in a pair of emerald green eyes, a small malnourished body clinging to him and the smell of blood mixed with the cleansing, earthy scent of rain.

He let the other man in while he absently retorted to Jack's greeting.

"Good morning to you too, though I have the feeling that you've been awake for quite some time longer than I have."

Hei let an amused smile slide across his face while he walked back to his kitchenette, motioning the man to follow him.

Telling the other man to make himself at home, the Chinese man picked up his knife where he'd left it and continued the conversation while cutting vegetables.

"What is it that you want to talk about? Did something happen?"

The older man, having left his shoes at the entrance, lowered himself to the floor in front of the low wooden table in the room and arranged himself into a comfortable, cross-legged position before he answered.

"No, nothing happened, there's just something that I wanted to ask you." November paused for a moment before he continued. "It concerns Masaki."

That made Hei curious, so he waited for the man to continue. When nothing was said for a few minutes, the younger one realized that the other Contractor wasn't going to continue talking, so it was up to him to keep the conversation going.

Looking down at the food he was preparing, the dark haired man decided that they could continue to talk after he had eaten, though it would probably be polite to offer his guest something to eat. Because of this train of thought, he, instead of inquiring further about what had happened to the Section-Chief of the Foreign Affairs Section 4, asked November whether the older man wanted some breakfast.

Had the assassin turned around, he would have been able to see surprise and intrigue flashing across Jack's face.

Wincing slightly, as it sounded incredibly callous to simply disregard Misaki-san's apparent situation, Hei quickly continued talking.

"It's better to talk about serious things with a full stomach, right?" This time the Chinese man turned looked over his shoulder to shoot the older man a quick smile.

November chuckled.

"Of course it is. I'd love to try your cooking, especially since it smells and looks wonderful."

Nodding, the assassin wiped his hands on a dishtowel and quickly set the table before sitting down.

Jack couldn't help but admire the rich variety of dishes and, serving himself, he tasted the food, only to praise the younger man for the excellent meal.

"It's delicious – I'm sure that if you wanted to, you could cook professionally. Your customers would be delighted."

Hei stilled for a moment, taking in the comment, before replying with Li Shengshun's customary humble- and shyness.

"Thank you, though I doubt that I'm talented enough to cook for a living."

The blonde looked at him amused, but didn't comment on the younger man's apparent timidity. They finished the rest of their meal in silence.

Wiping his mouth with a napkin, Hei thought that it was probably the right time for them to continue their talk about Misaki-san.

"You said you wanted to tell me something?" He turned inquisitive eyes to the older one, who just looked at him for a moment.

Jack's face was dead serious and the assassin tensed.

_Did something happen? Is she injured? _His eyes narrowed. _Did she figure something out? Do I need to silence her?_

Blue eyes stared into blue eyes. A mouth opened.

"Do you have any diseases that could be transmitted sexually?"

The assassin's mouth opened to answer before he realized just what had been asked. Stunned he stared at November, midnight blue eyes impossibly wide.

The other man calmly continued with his questions, seemingly not at all bothered by the younger male's shell-shocked silence.

"When was the last time you slept with someone? Does your family have any history of hereditary diseases? Have you ever slept with a male? What is your opinion of BDSM? Have you ever-", the Brit was abruptly cut off mid-sentence.

"**What?"**

Hei's voice wavered as he asked, too shocked to control his feelings.

The older man just looked at him patiently, smiling that infuriating smile of his, before replying.

"I was asking whether or not you have any sexu-", again he was cut off by the younger one.

"Why would you want to know that?"

The younger man's expression was almost comical in the horror it portrayed and suddenly Hei felt sympathy for Misaki-san. If the blonde was always like this, it didn't surprise him that she had protested that vehemently when the younger one had asked her whether they were dating or not.

The blonde continued to smile while he answered the question cheerfully.

"Well, it seems to me that Masaki likes you a lot, so I thought that I would make sure that the one she's interested in doesn't have any dubious sexual urges or maybe a disease that she could catch."

Hei looked at the Brit sceptically, his face a mixture of beet-red and chalk-white, which the older man watched curiously.

_Aren't Brits supposed to be prude?!_

Slowly the Chinese man got his bearings back and took a deep mouthful of tea. As the beverage slid down his throat, he thought about how he should answer the questions.

The first thing he did was deny.

_When in doubt, deny, deny, deny, even when__**- especially**__ when- it's something you really don't want to think about._

"I really don't think that Misaki-san is interested in me that way, so I don't think that there is a need for you to ask me this."

Jack sighed a suffering sigh and Hei felt irritation well up inside of him.

_Just what I need – another reason to loathe that man._

"While you obviously don't notice it when someone fancies you, let me tell you something."

The blonde leaned over the table, close enough to Hei that the younger man could feel the older one's breath on his lips.

"Kirihara Misaki has a crush on you and, since she is too self-conscious to ask these kinds of questions, I'll do it for her."

The agent leaned back again, looking for the world like a cat that ate the canary after robbing a dairy-product factory.

The Chinese man felt heat rise up in his cheeks and quickly took another gulp of his tea.

"You are not going to leave until I tell you these things, are you?"

It was unbelievably embarrassing, but if it got the other man off his back, he was willing to subject himself to it. Hei took a deep breath and slowly started to answer, his voice quiet and hesitant.

In reality, he could have said it coolly, because, when he had fought at the Heaven's Gate and had been injured, similar questions had been asked, though mostly about diseases that could be caught by sex and transferred by blood and other fluids, but only Hei could answer like that – not Li Shengshun.

"I don't have any… venereal… diseases. The last time I… slept with… someone was f-five years ago."

The assassin's face was coloured a bright crimson.

"As far as I know, my family didn't have any diseases that… could be a… danger… to my… sexual partner or me. I don't really support BDSM and while I don't like giving or receiving pain, I don't have anything against people who do. I mean… who do enjoy these kinds of things…"

Hei felt Jack's ice-blue eyes watching him, which caused him to falter sometimes in his speech.

"You didn't answer one question."

The comment caught him by surprise. What also startled the dark haired one was the interest in the other's voice and for a moment he just sat still and tried to think of something to say.

He really didn't know how to answer such a question without completely embarassing himself.

For a moment he thought about telling the truth, but from the way the older one looked, the Brit had another load of disconcerting and awkward questions and Hei really didn't want to answer any more of those.

He needed the other man to back of and the thing that would probably work best was a bluntly said lie.

"Yes. I have."

Ignoring the uneasy feeling he had when he told the lie, the dark haired man smiled at the older Contractor and cheerfully asked if the man had any other questions.

It surprised him when the older one answered with an interested look and curious words.

"You have? Do you want to tell me about it?" The curiosity in the blonde's words would amuse Hei if it weren't for the topic they were talking about.

He'd never have guessed that the other would ask further into it, because from what he had seen the day before, the man had been flirting with every female he had come into contact with and Hei knew that most womanizers were quite uncomfortable with same-sex relationships.

_I should know better than to simply assume things…_

Forcing a mischievous smile on his face, the assassin laughed. "I really don't think that I have to give you a detailed description of every single one of my sexual encounters, do I?"

Jack sighed disappointed, but agreed reluctantly. It was then that the Brit took a look at his wristwatch and made a sound of surprise, before his shoulders slumped.

"I'm late. Misaki isn't going to be pleased." Sighing deeply, he murmured more to himself than to the younger man. "July is going to be disappointed if I'm late for the fair…"

_A fair__?_

Arching his eyebrows Hei listened to the older man's muttering and decided that he really didn't want to know what the MI6 team did with their free time.

"If you're late, shouldn't you be going?"

November looked at him for a moment before he agreed and made his way to the door. He slipped on his shoes and turned around to face the younger Contractor.

"It was nice to talk to you and I'm sure that Misaki will be pleased to know that there won't be any danger of her or your children catching anything. I hope we can talk again soon."

Waving cheerfully, the man walked out of the door and closed it behind him.

In the silence of his room, Hei stared at the door, a bemused look on his face.

_I wonder what that was about. Somehow I have a bad feeling about this…_

* * *

Unfortunately for Hei, his bad feeling proved to be correct. Since the day they had met the first time two months ago, he had been running into November 11 almost every day, to the point where he suspected that the older man stalked him.

That made him nervous and a little paranoid even though he tried not to show it. The more time he spent with the man, the more he got the feeling that November 11 was deliberately provoking him.

The questions about his sexual relationships were only the first in a long chain of embarrassing and unrepeatable questions. The assassin was also afraid that he'd slip up and say something to incriminate himself – it was a possible scenario with how much his patience had been dwindling down to nothing.

The uncertainty was slowly driving Hei insane, and while he despised unnecessary killing, the Chinese man felt that if he 'ran into' the other Contractor again, he wouldn't be able to keep himself from butchering the man.

Even Huang had noticed his bad mood, and while neither he nor Mao were particularly fond of him (well, Mao loved the food and backrubs Hei sometimes gave him), they also didn't want to antagonise the already stressed assassin.

It was because of that, that, when 'Li-kun' ran into both November 11 and Masaki-san once again, it took all of his self-control to not commit murder in front of a high-ranking police officer.

Even Kirihara noticed that 'Li-kun's' smile was strained when he greeted them, which was an accomplishment in and of itself. It wasn't that she was stupid or even unobservant (if she were, she never would have become Section-Chief of the Foreign Affairs Section 4), it was just that Hei had fooled her with his fake personality to the point where she explained any discrepancies that crept up away with the argument that 'Li-kun' simply had an off day.

If the Chinese syndicate member was slipping up that badly, it was a sign for everyone in the general vicinity to throw themselves on the floor in hopes to be missed by any flying shrapnel as Hei brutally ripped the cause of his fury to shreds.

Finally dropping his smile, the assassin grabbed the Brit by his tie, and told Misaki-san that he'd borrow Jack for a moment. He then proceeded to drag the older man into a nearby alley and shoved the blonde against a wall before he demanded to know just why November 11 thought it was a good idea to stalk him.

Hei had been prepared for a lot of reactions – anger, surprise, even an honest explanation – he had, however, not been prepared for the reaction he got.

November 11, top agent at MI6, cold-hearted and cold-blooded Contractor, a frighteningly good fighter and an apparent stalker, burst into laughter. The blonde apparently thought that Hei's question had been hilarious, to the point where tears streamed down the man's face and he had to lean against the wall he had been pushed against.

Hei himself was baffled and was frustrated enough that the idea of bursting into tears didn't sound half bad.

Jack finally noticed that Hei didn't seem to be very happy with his reaction and forced himself to stop laughing.

Wiping his tears from his cheeks, the blonde grinned at the raven haired man before finally answering.

"I was wondering just when you'd confront me. I have to say that I'm impressed – you lasted longer than anyone else I know."

Gritting his teeth, Hei told himself to calm down.

_Don't electrocute him, don't stab him, don't kill him, don't rip him apart piece by piece, it will be suspicious if you're the last one to see him, for goodness sake, at least wait until it's dark and no one can see you…_

"Well? That doesn't answer the question why you would do something like that!"

If anything, November's grin seemed to grow even larger and –in Hei's opinion – more despicable.

"Isn't it obvious? I wanted to test how patient you are and I have to say that you exceeded my expectations. Congratulations."

Hei hands balled into fists and he replied with a dangerous calm.

"Is that the only reason you have for harassing me for two whole months?"

Jack just laughed.

"Of course it is! After Misaki mentioned your patience, I just couldn't resist my curiosity and- uh, you know, your eyebrow is twitching, are you okay?"

Bam!

Satisfied Hei shook his hand. His knuckles hurt, but it was totally worth the stunned expression on Novembers face when the older man's face met Hei's fist.

Turning around, Hei felt calm again for the first time since Jack first started to stalk him. Walking out of the alley without looking back at the MI6 agent, now sprawled out on the floor, he gave Misaki-san a cheerful smile and wished her a wonderful day before he walked to the park he always met his team at for mission briefings.

* * *

Stunned November 11 stared after Li Shengshun's retreating form. His face hurt like hell and he could already feel his eye swell. The punch had been totally unexpected, but Jack suspected that even if he had expected it, the fist had come flying fast enough to make him doubt his ability in blocking it.

Despite the pain he was in, the agent couldn't keep himself from grinning at his accomplishment – he had succeeded in making 'the world's most patient person' (at least after Misaki) lose their unshakeable calm.

If he were honest, the Brit would have to admit that he had been about to give up and concede defeat, as it seemed that nothing could make Li lose his cool.

November also had to admit, that he found the man intriguing, which was completely surprising to both him and his companions. Jack had never imagined, not even in his strangest dreams, that he would find himself fascinated by someone like Li Shengshun.

The first time he had heard about 'Li-kun' it had been after he had scolded Misaki's eating habits, to which she had replied that she ate less than the Chinese man she had met some time ago.

He had found himself amused and, in severe need of entertainment, had hounded Misaki for more information about the blue eyed man.

Both Misaki and Saito had described him as naive, good-natured, gullible, and patient, so he had been curious about him.

When he had noticed that Misaki seemed to have a crush on Li, November had imagined him to be a tall, dark, handsome, intelligent, mature and responsible man several years older than both of them, all the other things he had been told included.

Because of this, he had been very surprised when he had finally met Li-kun.

Dark and intelligent fit, even if the other man obviously felt he had to hide his intelligence. But other than that, nothing really seemed to be suitable for an accurate description.

Hating to do anything inaccurately, November had started to think about how to describe the Chinese better. Due to this, he had compared Shengshun with the characteristics he had imagined or been given.

Li wasn't short, but he wasn't really tall either - in fact he was about half a head shorter than November, which put him on the taller side of average.

Also, Shengshun was younger than even Misaki and Jack guessed that he was in his early twenties (which shot the impressions he had from Misaki completely to pieces – he'd never have guessed that she went for younger men…) which made him at least nine years younger than the Brit.

Another thing that he had noticed was that, with his pale skin, raven hair, slender built and wide, incredibly dark and incredibly blue eyes, Li was more beautiful than handsome despite there being a certain sharpness in his features.

Jack could clearly see just why Masaki was interested.

But it wasn't only looks – the younger man had an air around him (some would call it charisma) that simply attracted people towards him – even if, or maybe because, he had no idea that he was doing it.

What November could attest to, were Li's good-natured character and his patience. The blonde had stalked the younger man, been as obnoxious and annoying as possible and had asked embarrassing questions in front of other people and Li had put up with him for two whole months before going ballistic.

In that time the secret agent had found out many interesting things about the Chinese man.

Chuckling slightly he thought back to the first time he had asked Li embarrassing questions and how the man had answered them – after the initial surprise – without batting an eyelash.

The answers had been quite interesting, though also somewhat unexpected. Unfortunately, as time went by, Shengshun's willingness to answer questions deteriorated together with his patience, while the coldness in his midnight blue eyes increased exponentially.

_Really – the way he looked at me, I swear he was going to strangle me, not that the punch wasn't painful enough…_

_Now that I think about it, the last few days he started to look more and more homicidal – maybe I should change to a more secure hotel…_

That thought didn't sound all that unreasonable, because, while Li might be gullible and naïve (and November wasn't sure about that either, from what he had been able to weasel out of the younger man), there was no denying that the dark haired man was dangerous and trained in at least one martial art.

Li moved too well, too fluidly and his body was too balanced to allow for anything else.

Something that had bothered November was just how well the younger man hid his skill – it took a lot more skill to keep oneself from moving like that, than to move like that.

Shengshun had moved normally, maybe even a little clumsily, until the end of their first dinner, where the younger man had obviously been tired and distracted.

The Brit had also noticed, that Li had started to slip up more and more as time passed – it probably had something to do with the dark haired man's frayed temper…

The way he had stood from his chair at their first meeting had been one fluid motion that was a little like water and a little like a feline (Had November known that Hei worked with a Contractor that was trapped in the body of a cat and a Doll that used water to observe and find people, he probably would have laughed until he collapsed from a lack of air).

The punch Li had hit Jack with had hurt a lot, though the agent supposed he deserved it for teasing the younger one like that. He just hadn't been able to help himself, after all it had been either laughing or staring dazed and while both of these reactions were out of character for him, laughing had been more rational than staring like an idiot, no matter how wonderful Li looked when he was angry.

And what a sight it had been…

_Narrowed eyes, almost glowing in a bright, intense blue; thin lips pressed into a sharp line; dark, slender brows drawn together; the lithe body coiled as tight as a spring, ready to pounce at any given moment…_

_Yes, beautiful fits a lot better than handsome…_

Shaking his head, November stood up and brushed dust and dirt from his suit.

The outcome of Jack's musings and observations was that Li Shengshun was on the taller side of average, he was intelligent, young, more beautiful than handsome, charismatic, good-natured and patient, despite being dangerous and, from the way the dark haired man dressed, November had the feeling that the younger one was completely and utterly oblivious to how others perceived him.

He was also a wonderful cook, could keep up with November's sharp wit and was a good listener.

_If he were a woman, I'd totally go for him…_

Amused with himself, Jack walked out of the alley, where Misaki was waiting impatiently for him. Her whole attitude changed, when she saw his swollen left eye and the bruise on his cheekbone under it. Incredulously she stared at him, when she realised that the only one who would have been able to do that was Li-kun.

Grinning at her stare, he waved her concern off.

"Don't worry Misaki – I completely deserved it." He then proceeded to tell her about how he had followed and harassed Shengshun for two months and how patiently the younger man had endured Jack's nerve-racking behaviour until it had been too much to bear.

After he had finished, the brunette just stared at her colleague for a moment, as if waiting for the words 'I'm just joking.' that Jack often used after a particular horrible joke, but when the blonde man stayed silent, she shook her head with exasperation at his antics.

"You can be glad that Li-kun didn't do too much damage, after all, being such a trouble-magnet, he's pretty tough."

That interested November 11, since the characteristics he had gathered to describe Li with weren't really extensive and 'trouble-magnet' sounded intriguing.

"What do you mean by that? Shengshun didn't seem like he would go and look for trouble."

Misaki sighed, but agreed to tell him the story he asked for if he behaved himself and left Li in peace.

"Well, it started with a Contractor called VI952 – I later learned that he was called Wei Shi Jun. I met an informant who wanted to talk to me about…"

_Oh, yes, Shengshun is getting more and more interesting by the second…_

November 11, aka Jack Simon, grinned – he had promised Misaki that he'd behave himself, but he had never said just how long he would do so…

_Half-truths_, he decided, are_ a wonderful thing._

* * *

Elsewhere, Hei shuddered. He had a really bad feeling about something, but he couldn't tell about what it was. He just hoped it wasn't something that would be a problem with his mission.

Huang and Mao had been cautious when he had arrived at the park, while Yin was her usual apathetic self. Both men (man, male cat – where was the difference?) relaxed when they saw Hei's good mood, but now Huang was nervous because of something else.

"Hei, do you have a corpse we need to dispose of? I don't really care, as long as it's someone who deserves it, but if you weren't careful, it could be traced back to you."

Annoyed, Hei glared at Huang. He didn't know what should insult him more – Huang's belief that Hei had killed someone in his rage, or that the retired police officer obviously didn't think that the assassin could cover his tracks well enough to keep from getting caught.

"I didn't kill anyone and even if I had, you wouldn't need to worry about there being anything that could be traced back to me." He said that in his usual monotone voice, which didn't really make what he said sound believable.

"What made you that angry anyway? It must have been something or someone incredible to make you that furious." Mao was a good example for the saying 'Curiosity kills the cat'. The man-cat always got into trouble because of his need to satisfy his curiosity.

To everyone's surprise it was Yin that answered the question.

"The top agent of the MI6 was following Hei around for two months."

For a moment there was silence, before both Huang and Mao started yelling at Hei. It took the dark haired one some time to reply, since the two other men were too busy with panicking to listen to him.

"November 11 didn't follow me around because he suspects me of being BK-201. If he had, I would have acted differently and, had the opportunity arisen, eliminated him. He followed me around to annoy me, as he wanted to know just how much I was willing to put up with his inexcusable behaviour."

That rendered both man and cat speechless. "Why on earth would he do that? He's a Contractor after all, isn't he? That's not something a rational person, let alone a Contractor would do." Huang was baffled and had no problem with showing it.

Mao nodded, also curious. "Well Hei, what did he say?"

The assassin was annoyed – the other men were worse than his landlady when it came to gossiping. He was also annoyed because he had no idea just why Jack would do something irrational like following another guy around until said guy's patience ran out.

"I don't know. I didn't stay around after I punched him." He answered shortly.

This time, even Yin blinked as if surprised. Under his calm exterior, Hei was quite hot-headed, but he knew better than to simply walk away from someone who hadn't given him wanted information.

"It's not important. What is the mission about?" It was blatantly obvious that the Contractor wanted to change the topic, but the topic he changed to was serious enough to snap everyone out of their stupor.

"Some rich business guy called Yamazaki Sho decided that it would be a good idea to smuggle an apple seed out of the gate. He planted it, grew a tree and found out that the apples growing from it were an incredible drug. He now decided to sell them. The syndicate wants the seed that the tree grew from and they want the guy out of the way – it's a lot like the stone-flower-seed you had to steal from the Ch'ing-Long-Tang some time ago."

The oldest one took out a small stack of papers that he gave to Hei.

"These are the blue-prints of the villa the guy lives in. I marked the place where it is. There's also information about the employees, and the businessman – there are pictures, so you know whom you need to take out. The change of shifts for the security personnel is underlined. You'll see that there're ponds all around the house, so Yin is going to keep an eye on the security. I'll provide back-up as sniper, in case you need cover for a quick getaway. Mao'll stay near the police, since we need to know if or when the police will get involved. We do it today. Everyone is to be at their necessary location at eleven o'clock. That's all. Don't be late. If you screw up, I'll kill you."

With that, Huang left, not wanting to stay with them any longer than he had to. There was a lot that could be said about the man (a lot of swear words too), but one simply had to admire his resourcefulness and thoroughness when he did a job. They were just two of the many reasons why the syndicate had decided to recruit him.

Sighing inwardly, Hei looked at the papers. Not for the first time he was thankful that he learned incredibly fast. Otherwise knowing everything there was to know about the target would have been close to impossible.

Mao stretched and left together with Yin, after saying goodbye to Hei.

_He probably hopes that he'll get a backrub from __her,_ thought the Contractor absently, already leafing through the papers. He put them away after some time and looked at the clock fastened at the side of a building.

_It's 13:15 – I'll go back to the flat and cook something._ It was a mundane thought that people who knew what Hei did for a living wouldn't expect of him, but the Chinese man liked to cook and he enjoyed eating and he had the feeling that he would need all the strength he could get for this mission.

* * *

Silently November crept through the apartment he rented and shared with his team. He really didn't want April to see him with a black eye – he'd never live it down if she knew about it. Of course he knew that he couldn't avoid her forever, but with a pair of sunglasses, a little ice and luck, he'd be able to hide it from her and July.

The boy never liked it when one of them was injured, so he'd like to spare the kid the knowledge – at least that was what he told himself.

Unfortunately he didn't seem to have the luck he needed to deceive his team mates.

The living room door was violently thrown open and November winced as he heard April's loud voice. The dark skinned woman walked into the hall, July, following her closely.

As usual she held a can of beer in her hands and for a second November marvelled at her resistance to alcohol – then apprehension, mixed with resignation, made itself noticeable.

Both woman and child stopped dead in their tracks when they saw their companion crouched on the floor, looking like a child caught with a hand in the cookie-jar. The black eye completed the picture.

Snapping out of his stupor, November quickly stood and straightened his jacket while he cleared his throat.

April just looked at him for a moment before a large grin spread on her face – it didn't last long, because, after taking another look at the blonde's face, she threw her head back and burst into laughter.

July's reaction was less embarrassing for the blonde. as he just looked at them blankly, before turning and walking back into the living room.

_They could at least be a little concerned about my well-being…_

November sighed deeply and waited for the woman to stop laughing.

He waited.

"Bwahahahahahaha…"

And waited.

"…hahahahahahaha…"

And waited-

"…hahahahaha…"

-until his impatience got the better of him and he grabbed her arm, wrenched her beer can out of her hand, opened the door of a nearby closet, shoved her into it and, using the beer, froze said door shut after slamming it closed.

Satisfied November made his way to the kitchen where he took a box of ice-cream out of the refrigator.

He made his way onto the balcony and lit a cigarette.

While he smoked to adhere his contract terms, he looked down at the street 30 floors below, where people didn't look like people from the height he was at.

The carton he pressed against his eye was cold and stung where it touched the swelling and he couldn't help but think of the cold anger Shengshun had shown him.

_I really have to improve my hand-to-hand skills before I start to provoke him again…_

* * *

"November? November! Come on, don't be like that! Hey! Can you even hear me? Open up! You can't deny that it was funny! HEY! NOVEMBER! Okay, don't help me – I don't need your help! July? Are you here? Help me out, will you? JULY! **LET ME OUT OF HERE!!**"

* * *

It was eleven o'clock and Hei was perched on the branch of a tree, his mask a cool, familiar presence, his dark clothing and the tree's leafs around him were hiding him from the sight of the security personnel that was walking around the premises.

He was waiting for the change of security and also for the go-ahead of Yin and Mao. Finally he heard Mao's voice through the earplug he wore.

"_This checkpoint is clear. The police is busy dealing with a non-existing contractor and the MI6 guys are with them. I'll notify you if they react to Hei."_

It was too dangerous for the assassin to answer, but he heard Huang's quiet confirmation. Now they were only waiting for Yin to tell them when they could start acting.

It took another few minutes, but finally she gave the final go-ahead.

"_Alright__. Hei. Now it's your show, so don't screw it up. From now on, we won't contact you and you won't contact us for anything other than emergencies. If there's trouble, I start shooting and that's that. Yin, Mao, if something happens, tell me. End of communication. For now."_

Taking the earplug out of his ear, Hei had to suppress the urge to roll his eyes. Huang acted as if it was their first time doing a job together – which it wasn't and it definitely wouldn't be the last time either.

Shaking off these thoughts, Hei concentrated on the mission.

The villa was large, and had five levels above ground and three levels underground. The tree was located in the lowest underground level. The preparation of the drugs was done in the next to last basement, while the first one was simply a façade for the police and other visitors who got curious and decided to snoop around.

Waiting until the last security man walked around the corner, Hei leapt from the branch he was standing on to the window sill across and slightly below him.

He opened the window easily and stepped into the room it led to. It was the owner's office and, since the syndicate wanted Hei to destroy all evidence that the tree ever existed, the assassin attached a small bomb on the underside of the desk in the room. Despite its size, the explosive would easily be able to destroy the whole room and damage the adjacent rooms.

Not making a sound, Hei moved to the door and opened it a crack. The hall was silent and so the Black Reaper, as he was also called, made his way out of the room and down the stairs to the entrance of the first basement.

Hei frowned. It was too easy. He didn't particularly like difficulties, but someone with his skill and experience eventually came to expect that things rarely went exactly how you wanted them to when on a job. That was the reason why Huang hadn't really given Hei any orders concerning how he had to act other than telling him to be punctual and not to screw up. The oldest one in their team had concentrated more on back-up and support, since he had learned the hard way that when something happened, Hei could react faster and more appropriately to it, considering that the Contractor was actually the one in the messy situation most of the time.

Every single one of Hei's instincts screamed at him that this was a set-up, a trap cleverly (or not so cleverly) laid out to catch an intruder.

There were no security personnel around. Not even those that they had expected and which Hei had been prepared to take out. No, the Chinese man was sure that it was a trap, but that would mean that either there was a leak in the syndicate, or it was a test to see if Hei was still stable after his mission in the PANDORA-institute.

The blue eyed man couldn't help but think that it was the latter of the two, but if it was, he certainly wasn't in a position where he was able to complain.

Gritting his teeth, Hei decided to simply take the risk and opened the door slowly, his back pressed to the wall beside it. He took out a mirror and used it to take a take a look at the room. It was messy: cardboard boxes and old furniture littered the room, and while no person could be sighted, Hei felt a pair of eyes on him. Deciding that standing around wouldn't give him the answers he wanted, Hei moved into the room as fast as he could, nothing but a shadow in the darkness. He quickly looked around to make sure that there weren't any attackers – he also didn't make the mistake of forgetting to check the room above.

There was nobody. Tense and alert, Hei walked to the hidden trapdoor on the floor. He opened it and, without hesitating, slid into the room below.

Moving too quickly could get him killed, but it seemed that his opponent had a sense for dramatics – meaning that there was probably a whole army of men waiting for him in the last basement.

There were crates filled with apples on this floor and bottles of apple-juice were stacked in shelves lining the walls. Pausing for a moment to consider the best locations, Hei planted the bombs, sure that they'd go off when he wanted them to.

Again there was a trapdoor. It was closed and Hei really had no illusions as to why (Huang's information said that it was always open) it wasn't open.

Now more cautious, Hei kicked the door and it opened with a loud banging noise, while simultaneously retreating. He didn't want to be caught in any traps if there were any.

There weren't.

Narrowing his eyes, Hei dropped down to the last level. It was lighted, and with the white walls, ceiling and floor, the Black Reaper stood out like a sore thumb.

On the far side of the room, the apple tree was planted. It looked like a normal tree, other than the fact that the apples were black.

It wasn't he tree that worried him though – it was the man in front of it. The man was tall, about a head taller than Hei, had pale skin, crimson hair and crimson eyes. He looked calm and smiled pleasantly, which put Hei on edge.

The red-head continued to smile, even as he started talking.

"You don't have to be that cautious. We're both Contractors after all, I'm sure we can come to an agreement that leaves the tree in this room and both of us alive. Though", he added, "if there isn't, I'm afraid I'll have to kill you."

Still smiling pleasantly, the red-head looked at him, apparently waiting for an answer.

He wasn't going to get one, though, since the Black Reaper disliked Contractors like that guy – pretending to be all amiable and happy and acting as if they had feelings. It made him sick. Hei himself acted like that in front of clueless civilians, but when he met people in the know, he immediately dropped the façade, since in his opinion it wasn't worth the energy it took if it fooled nobody and was useless. In an instant, Hei drew his blade and threw it across the distance to the other Contractor. The red-head simply continued to smile while his body glowed slightly, like it did for all Contractors that used their ability.

Hei felt his body freeze and noticed, despite having no control over his body, that the other Contractor didn't even try to avoid the attack. A second later, he realised why.

Hei was glad that it had been a shot that wasn't aimed to kill. He had thrown it to the other man's left shoulder because he wanted to know the red-head's ability.

As the blade made contact, Hei felt a soaring pain in his right shoulder – it was the familiar feeling of cold metal tearing into warm flesh, but he could detect no blade other than his own. It was as if he had been hurt by air.

He doubted that the taller man had that kind of ability, though, since every Contractor had an ability that fit their personality and Hei refused to think that an actor like that had a power as straightforward as the ability to move air.

For a moment his thoughts turnes to November 11, who had a straightforward ability which suited him almost frighteningly well, before he shook that thought off.

The conclusion that Hei reached was that he had been injured by his own blade.

Also, it had been his right shoulder, while the other Contractor had been injured on his left shoulder. It was probably an ability that transferred one's injuries towards the person standing opposite oneself – also it transferred the whole wound, not only the pain. Feeling warm blood streaming from the wound, Hei decided that it was an annoying power to be subjected to.

It also meant that using weapons wasn't going to work. He could only use things that would hurt and possibly kill the red-head and not him and the only thing that came to his mind was his own ability. When Hei had fought with Nick, who had had the same power as him, he had noticed that being electrocuted didn't do anything to him other than push him away.

_Now, how do I get close to him?_

Without hesitation he launched himself at the other man, throwing a punch into his face that made the red-head stagger. Finally that damned smile had vanished. Ignoring the pain in his shoulder, Hei continued his assault on his opponent, this time electrocuting the man anytime they touched. That wasn't often. After the first hit, which had obviously surprised him, the other man showed that he was a skilled martial artist. Hitting, blocking, a punch, a round-house-kick, a jab to Hei's throat, and quite a bit more was used to keep the Black Reaper from touching his prey.

The red eyed man knew better than to try and use his ability in such close quarters, and both of them were quite evenly matched in hand-to-hand combat.

Growing tired of the way they avoided each other's hits, Hei decided on a painful, but effective tactic that would help him win the fight.

He simply didn't avoid a hit.

It had been a punch to his stomach and Hei took it without a second thought. Doubling over after getting hit, and while the other man was still surprised by his success, the assassin grabbed the fist that had hit him and let loose.

Electricity coursed through both of their bodies, though it did damage to only one of them.

The red haired man's eyes rolled back in his head until only the whites showed. When he was sure that the man was unconscious, Hei pulled his knife towards him, by the wire he used to keep it on hand.

Grabbing it by the hilt, the Black Reaper lived up to his name and cold-bloodedly slit the other man's throat. He disliked needless killing, but he needed time to figure out just how he got the seed out of the tree and he didn't need an unconscious Contractor near him, whom he had to hit every few minutes, so he'd stay immobile.

Letting go of the corpse, Hei moved to the tree, scrutinising it, so he'd have at least a clue of how to get the seed.

Huang hadn't told him anything about it – the only thing the man had said had been "You'll see it when you get there".

Why the older man hadn't simply informed him about it, Hei didn't know, but he suspected that it had something to do with Huang's dislike of Contractors. Another possibility was that it had really been a test from the organisation and Huang had known about it and had been ordered to not tell him anything.

The Contractor didn't really care – after all, no matter what the reason – it didn't change the fact that he didn't know anything about the retrieval process.

It was then that Hei noticed a dim glow in the middle of the bark, around the size of his palm. Intrigued, he came closer, put a hand on it and, with his knife, dug whatever produced the glow out of the wood.

As soon as it hit the floor, the tree withered and died and Hei realized that what he had dug out must have been the seed. Shrugging slightly, he put the glowing thing in his pocket and proceeded to disperse the explosives he carried with him.

Finishing, the Chinese man made his way out of the villa, this time glad that there weren't any guards. He walked into the office he had used as entry-point and put another explosive where the safe should be located. Huang had reassured him that one bomb would do the job just as well, but Hei had learned the hard way that it was better to be safe than sorry.

The dark haired man climbed onto the window sill and, after making sure that nobody had noticed him, he climbed up a story to another window, which he opened as easily as he had opened the first one – it was the businessman's bedroom. Slipping into the room, Hei walked to the bed and pushed the blanket covering the man back.

After making sure it was the right one and he didn't kill someone who didn't need to be killed, the Reaper took his knife, still bloodstained, and stabbed the man into his heart, adding a dose of electricity for good measure.

He waited for some time and after making sure that the man was dead, he slipped out of the window again. Putting his earplug back into his ear, Hei contacted Huang and the others.

"_I have the seed and terminated the target. The bombs are planted and ready for detonation."_

Huang replied, obvious relief in his voice.

"_Got it. Go to an agreeable distance, detonate them and go home. Leave your equipment__ and the seed at the usual place, I'll come get it."_

Mao and Yin voiced their agreement and Hei knew that they wouldn't leave their post until he contacted them and told them that he was back to being Li Shengshun. Stopping his run, the assassin decided that he was far enough away to not get caught up in the explosion or be hit by any flying shrapnel, so he detonated the bombs.

He watched for a moment, as the villa caved in, deprived of it's foundation, then he continued on his way to the place where he could drop off his equipment.

Arriving at the place – an alley near the park where they had their meetings – Hei changed into the clothes he had prepared beforehand. He grimaced when he changed shirts, since his shoulder was hurting like hell. He had been able to ignore it until now, since he was used to pain, but he also knew that ignoring a wound for a longer time was unhealthy and Hei had no desire to let the wound get infected. Doing so would either get him sick and killed, or he'd lose an arm and neither possibility sounded good to him.

He was now dressed in his usual jeans and white button-down shirt, though his right sleeve was turning red at an alarmingly fast rate. Seeing that the shirt was already ruined, Hei slashed the fabric of both his jacket and his shirt, so if someone on the streets asked him about it, he'd be able to explain it away as a simple mugging. The dark bruise on his stomach would probably help with that, the Contractor thought ruefully.

Putting his knife away, Hei contacted his team again.

"_I changed clothes and left the equipment__ and the item at the checkpoint. I was injured in a fight and need medical help. Should I go to the hospital or should I bandage it myself?"_

"_How bad is it Hei?"_ Mao's voice was actually concerned, which surprised him a little.

"_I was hit on my right shoulder. The wound is bleeding rather strongly and though it's probably not life threatening, it has to be stitched up."_

Yin didn't take part in the conversation, but she always was more content to just listen to them talk.

Huang sighed deeply.

"_Alright. Go to the hospital and pretend you were mugged. Leave your wallet with your stuff and I'll give it back to you when I see you next."_

Hei accepted the order.

"_I will and I don't have my wallet with me. I'll make up a reasonable excuse as to why I was out on this time of the night."_

While it hadn't seemed that long to Hei, in actuality it was almost two o'clock in the morning and he slowly felt exhaustion creep into his limbs.

"_Got it. Leave the earplug there too, just to be on the safe side. We'll meet up in three days at 10:00 am at our usual place. Don't be late."_

Huang didn't wait for a reply before he hung up on them. Hei heard Mao sigh in exasperation.

"_Well, that's it from me too. Get better soon Hei."_

Mao's farewell was politer than Huang's, but he, too, didn't wait for a reply.

"_Hei"_ this time it was Yin. _"Good night. Sleep well. Heal fast. November 11 is walking into your direction. You'll probably meet him. Goodbye."_

Stunned Hei stared at the wall in front of him. Jack was nearby? The assassin cursed his bad luck and quickly put the earplug into the bag that contained his working clothes and weapons.

Straightening again, he again suppressed a wince and walked out of the alley, keen on getting away from this place. He really didn't want to deal with the obnoxious MI6 agent when he was tired and in pain, so he quickened his steps, walking into the direction of the nearest hospital.

It seemed, though, that fate brought the two of them together, no matter how much Hei loathed the man.

Not watching where he was going, the dark haired man barrelled straight into a body walking out of another alley, which made him lose his balance and land painfully on his back.

_Why the hell are there that many alleys around?_ Hei's thoughts were tinged with annoyance as he glared up at one he'd run into – who'd also stayed standing by a miracle.

To his chagrin, but not to his surprise (he now knew that his luck was rotten when it concerned the older man), the one he'd run into was November 11.

_Yin could have told me from which direction he was coming from…_

The thought was angry and inwardly Hei flinched at how ungrateful he sounded. Yin had warned him that there was a possibility that he could run into the Brit, but he had been too preoccupied with himself to pay attention to where he was walking. On a job that could get him killed.

Hei, or Shengshun, felt quite a bit happier, when he noticed the giant bruise that made up one quarter of the blonde's face, though that feeling vanished just as quickly when his shoulder screamed in reply to the harsh landing on the floor.

It was only then, that Hei noticed that November had been talking to him for quite some time.

Too tired to say anything and too exhausted to even try to get up from the floor, the younger man simply stared at the older one, hoping that Jack would catch the drift and either repeat what he'd said, help him up from the floor, or leave him alone.

* * *

It wasn't often that November 11 was frustrated, but once in a blue moon it happened and the cause of said frustration could only be pitied.

Jack ignored his frustration – like any good, rational Contractor would do – and looked at Shengshun who stared back at him as if he had no idea what the blonde had been talking about.

In fact, Jack bet that the Chinese man probably didn't have a clue and wasn't even trying to hide it.

Not that it had been important. It had just been a barb about learning how to walk, which was slightly mean, but since when was a Contractor bothered by guilt? Right – never, which was exactly what November was getting at.

Tiredly the Brit looked at Shengshun again. At the moment, all the older one wanted to do was go back to his hotel and go to sleep but that was impossible at the moment. After she had come out of the closet (November smirked at the ambiguous thought) April had thrown him out after threatening the story out of him, which had put him into a bad mood.

Now he was walking into the cause of said bad mood and he could only thank the good luck he had where it concerned the younger man.

Ignoring the other's stare, he looked at the dark haired one again.

It was only then, that he noticed the lines of exhaustion and pain on Li's face and his eyes were ultimately drawn to Shegshun's right shoulder, where the fabric of his jacket was already turning red. Jack also noticed the cut in the cloth and immediately his frustration vanished as if it had never even existed. Instead concern flooded his senses and hadn't November been that worried, he would have noticed that this certainly wasn't a normal reaction for someone as laid back as him.

The Brit dropped to his knees beside the younger male and asked what happened to the Chinese man, while the blonde prodded at the wound, trying to see just how bad it was.

"Eh? What happened? Well, I was mugged." That was all Li said, until Jack looked at him with consternation.

Glowering, Shengshun continued with his explanation.

"Well, I couldn't sleep, so I went for a walk, because I can always sleep after I go for a walk. Well, when I was on my way back to my flat, some guy walked towards me and demanded I give him money. I left my wallet at home, since I thought that I wouldn't need it, and I told him that, but he wouldn't believe me, so he punched me. When I stuck to my story, he pulled out a knife and started threaten me with it, but since I really couldn't do anything other that tell that guy the truth, he stabbed me and when I was down started to search my pockets. When he didn't find anything, he cursed and left, so I got up and started to walk into the direction of the nearest hospital when I ran into you. That's about it."

Deciding that going to the hospital really was the smartest thing to do in such a situation, November grabbed Li's left arm and helped the younger one up. When he noticed that the dark haired one seemed to be unsteady on his feet, he wrapped an arm around Shengshun's thin waist and steadied him as they slowly walked towards the hospital. It was only a little while away, so calling an ambulance would take longer than walking.

While they moved, Jack continued to ask questions that Li tried to answer.

"What did your attacker look like?"

"I don't know. He wore a cap and a hooded sweatshirt."

"Can't you remember anything? His height, maybe you saw his hair colour, was he muscular or skinny? What colour was his skin?"

"Hmm. He was about a head taller than me and he was thin, but I remember thinking about how strong he was. And his skin… I don't know, but I think it was normal. Not pale, not tan, just this in-between thing that most people have.

I didn't see any hair, but he had a rough voice, like he smoked, or something."

While answering, Li's voice had become more and more quiet, and Jack admitted that he was worried about the man he had teased and annoyed for two whole months.

Looking down a little, November noticed that Shengshun's skin was pale and clammy, his eyes were glassy and he was breathing shallowly. Looking up again, Jack was incredibly happy to see the entrance of the hospital ahead. He quickened his steps, now dragging Li with him. He rushed through the door and demanded immediate attention. As the doctors took Shengshun away to tend to his wound, November let himself sink into one of the chairs in the waiting area – he was adding unlucky, accident-prone, tough and slight to his list of things he knew about Li.

Sighing deeply, he thought about the last one. The last few meters, Jack had noticed that he easily could have carried the other man.

Shengshun barely weighed anything – he was built more for speed than strength.

_Not,_ November thought with self-derision, _that he can't pack a punch…_

_April and July probably don't miss me, so I don't really have anything to do __– I might as well wait here._

Looking at his watch, the British agent prepared for a long night.

_I wonder if they have coffee…_

* * *

I congratulate everyone who managed to get this far – I hope you enjoyed it (or at least didn't dislike it too much)!

This is the second version - many thanks to Dear4Life for telling me about my mistakes.

TTF


	2. Chapter 2

Shades of Blue: Chapter 1

Plays after episode 14

míng yè - dark night: Hei's childhood nickname

xîng - star: Pai's childhood nickname

yân - dark blue

lán tiân - pale blue, sky blue

Many thanks to explodreamer for helping me with the translations!

* * *

When the syndicate had contacted them for the first time, it had just been after Hei and Pai had lost everything.

Their parents had died, the rest of their family had abandoned them and they hadn't had anything other than the clothes on their backs and Pai's new ability – the appearance of the Gates had changed everything for them.

The organisation had only wanted Pai, but after witnessing the abilities and the sheer unending potential of her older brother, they had been interested in him too – the two of them really hadn't had the option to refuse the job offer.

After all, what possibilities were there for an eleven year old Contractor and her thirteen years old brother who had undergone training in martial arts?

So they had joined the organisation and their lives had changed again – training, training and training and the only physical rest they got was when they were educated in languages, computer-hacking, how to vanish in a crowd, how to go undercover and several other things. Then they had been given missions – at first it had only been the two of them, afterwards others had joined and sometimes they had parted for solo-missions.

What they had needed to think about, though, had been names.

They had been allowed to choose their codenames in the syndicate and both of them had thought long and hard about just what they'd call themselves for the rest of their lives, both in private and in public (if they weren't undercover anywhere).

The fact that they couldn't keep their real names hadn't bothered them. At their home, the both of them were ignored and just barely tolerated – nobody had called them by their real names in years. It was always just "you" or "boy" or "girl" or, if someone was in a good mood, it was "Yân" for Hei and "Lán Tiân" for Pai – like the colour of their eyes.

Because of the hate they felt for these names, they had long since made up their own nicknames.

Hei had always loved the stars – they had been his escape for so long, that they had grown to be a part of him. They calmed him, they cheered him up and he could lose himself in their beauty, without having to fear rejection or hurt. So he had started to call his sister "Xîng" – she was as beautiful as the silvery lights in the night-sky that he adored.

Pai, however, had always loved the dark and the night – she had liked to hide in the darkness, so that nobody could find her and call her names or hurt her. The only one who had always been able to find her had been her older brother, who protected her just like her beloved night did, so she called him "Míng Yè" – after the dark night that provided her with shelter.

In the end, they simply decided to take the colour of the objects they had named themselves after as codenames – as long as they had their names, the other would always be with them, for a star without the night-sky was pale and barely visible and the night without stars was like an all-encompassing void, that would swallow you until you died of loneliness.

They were only shadows of themselves when they were not together.

* * *

After November 11 had taken Hei to the hospital, they hadn't seen each other for quite some time.

The MI6 agent had waited until the younger man had woken up, wanting to make sure that the younger man's life wasn't in danger, but afterwards Hei hadn't seen or heard from the Brit again.

Until now.

The assassin had been recovering from his fight with the agents from the Russian Intelligence (Huang had mentioned that their names were Bertha and Itzhak, not that Hei was interested in that), when he had been called by his former stalker, who had asked him for his help.

The dark haired man had been uneasy about meeting the older Contractor, though he hadn't been able to pinpoint why.

When November had followed him around for two whole months, he had been annoyed and had wished that the blonde would leave him alone, but when Jack had acquiesced to his unspoken wish, Hei had felt a strange sensation in his chest. It resembled the feeling he got when he thought about Pai – it was a lot less painful, less sad and it was tinged with irritation, but the way these feelings resembled each other despite their differences made him uncomfortable.

The assassin had hated it and done his best to avoid thinking about either Pai or November, since he hadn't been able to think about one without thinking of the other. That meant that the emotion he usually felt doubled and caused him twice as much sorrow as it normally did.

In all honesty, he had been glad when the Russian double showed up and Yin had vanished, because it had taken his mind away from his troubles. After Yin had returned to them and the other agents had been killed, Hei's troubles had returned too, and with them a big amount of self-loathing that he felt for using the younger girl's past and her pain as distraction.

The relationship he and the Doll had wasn't easy to describe and the Contractor wasn't even sure he wanted to put it into words.

When her teacher had wanted her to come with him, she had asked the assassin if they were friends and he hadn't known how to answer that. He knew that he trusted Yin to watch out for him and he knew that they were closer than they were with either Huang (who was always hostile) or Mao (who observed more than he interacted), but he honestly couldn't say whether they were friends or not.

So he had told her that that was something she had to decide for herself and it was only after seeing the silver haired girl's astonishment that he had realised what he had done. He had given the Doll the chance to choose and had thus given her some of her former freedom back.

As soon as he had realised his deed, he had known that he had to take responsibility for it – meaning that, no matter what she would have chosen, he would have protected her from the syndicate.

The decision she had made had saved him from having to betray his employers and he had been glad that she had chosen the way she had.

Not only had he been saved, he had also kept the only real ally he had and maybe, just maybe, she had even turned into a friend.

That day, when she had decided to stay with him, Mao and Huang, Hei had decided that he would protect Yin, no matter from whom – he never wanted to experience something like Carmine's death again; he never wanted to lose a comrade again.

Because of the almost brotherly feelings he had for the silver haired Doll, he despised himself all the more for using her as a distraction from November 11 – someone who was his enemy.

That was the reason why, when he had been called by the other Contractor, his first impulse had been to hang up on the blonde.

He had barely suppressed said urge and instead managed to reply to Jack's greeting relatively civilly.

When the other man had asked if the Chinese man could help the police, Hei had been cautious, but he really didn't have a good reason for refusing and, if seen positively, the other man owed him a favour if the assassin helped them out.

It was because of this thought that the dark haired man now stood in front of Kirihara Misaki's office, wearing his trademark white button-down shirt, a pair of blue jeans, trainers and his green jacket.

Sighing deeply, he knocked on the door, taking a surprised step backwards when the door was jerked open suddenly. A hand shot out of the room and pulled him into the office, the owner ignoring the startled protest of the assassin.

When Hei got his bearings back, he noticed that the one who had grabbed him was November 11 and, other than the blonde, there were only four others in the room.

The Chinese man recognised Saito-san and Misaki-san, and also the other two weren't unknown to him – their codenames were April and July. Another Contractor and a Doll – together with November 11, they made up the best team of the British secret service.

Hei greeted those he was supposed to know cheerfully.

"Good morning Misaki-san, Saito-san!"

Continuing his act, he introduced himself to the other two MI6 agents.

"Good morning, I'm Li Shengshun and Jack told me that I could help you out?"

He voiced this as a question, while shooting a gentle smile at the woman and the child.

Both Saito-san and Misaki-san smiled back enthusiastically, practically beaming at him and Hei could tell that they were grateful that he decided to help them.

It was April's reaction that surprised him though.

She walked up to him, stopping just a short distance away and leaned towards him, so that her face was barely an inch away from his face.

For a moment the assassin's mind flashed back to November's first visit at his flat, where they had been in a similar situation. To his own surprise, the Chinese had to admit that he vastly preferred the older man's invasion of his personal space – the dark skinned woman smelled of perfume, smoke and alcohol and Hei felt a little dizzy at the mixture of these overwhelming smells.

To his relief, she retreated after a short while and he could breathe easier again, though that didn't last for long, as a pair of arms was painfully wrapped around him.

"So this is the guy that gave you a black eye?" April's voice was loud and cheerful, as she pressed the air out of his lungs – despite the fact that he was starting to see stars, the assassin couldn't help but admire the strength of this woman, considering that she was half a head shorter than he was.

Unfortunately, the stars in front of his eyes spread and he could feel darkness edge in on him. With the last air in his lungs, he managed to wheeze out a breathless – and quite strangled – "Air! Please! Can't breathe!" but his plea was ignored, until Misaki-san decided that strangling their helper really wasn't in their best interests.

The moment she pried the female MI6 agent off of him, the Chinese man could have kissed her in gratitude, which, somehow, his expression must have shown, since the Section-Chief of the Foreign Affairs Section 4 blushed hotly and Saito's expression darkened slightly.

April was pouting, but after a moment the exuberant woman grinned again with an almost evil look on her face.

"So, November" she turned to the other, uncharacteristically silent Contractor. "This sweet little thing managed to hit you hard enough that you had a bruise for almost two weeks? I have to say that I'm impressed!"

She turned to Hei and gave him the thumbs up, a broad grin splitting her face in two. The happy expression slipped a little when all that her blonde team-mate did, was mutter something under his breath, obviously not the least amused about anything at the moment.

The assassin was startled. In all the time he had known the older man (i.e. the other man stalked him), the Brit had always been amused or, if not amused, then at least content or calm – it was strange for Hei to see the other Contractor in such a bad mood and he wondered what had caused it.

Saito cleared his throat and the strange atmosphere that had fallen over the room with Jack's moody reaction cleared instantly as the older man started to explain just why the younger man was needed.

"You see, we were called to a crime-scene, where we found the corpse of a Chinese man – nearby we found a woman with a small child. They had the man's blood on their clothes and they were obviously terrified, so we wanted to ask what happened. There was only one problem."

Hei nodded, already guessing just what that problem was and why they needed his help.

"They don't speak Japanese or English, do they?"

Misaki-san smiled impressed and agreed.

"Yes, you are right. We weren't able to procure a translator from the police, since they are busy with some kind of event or visit, so No-, I mean, Simon-san," she blushed at her slip up, while the MI6 agents glared at her "well, he had the idea to call you and, since I and Saito know you, we thought that you could help us out."

The dark haired man had looked at her curiously when she had stumbled over Jack's name, but decided to ignore it for the time being – he would bring the topic up when she would least expect it and force her to explain it to him. Then he could finally call November by his codename and not the fake one that he usually used.

Hei opened his mouth to agree, but he was cut off by April's protest.

"Hey! July and I haven't even introduced ourselves yet! You can't just ignore us like that." The blue haired woman glared at them defiantly through her amber-coloured shades, before sharply turning into the younger man's direction.

Out of the corner of his eye, Hei noticed that November was rolling his eyes, but immediately concentrated on April again, when she started to talk.

"You already know the party-pooper known as Jack Simon, so I'll just introduce myself and this little guy here!"

At this, she shoved the small blonde haired boy in front of her, where he stood impassively and watched Hei through empty eyes. The Chinese man stared back for a moment, which seemed to surprise everyone – they grew even more shocked when the dark haired man knelt down in front of the boy and smiled gently at the Doll.

"Hi, I'm Li Shengshun. It's nice to meet you. What's your name?" The assassin boldly took one of July's small hands into his own and waited. He knew from experience that Dolls reacted better to physical contact than anything else, but he really didn't expect a strong reaction.

The boy just looked at the man in front of him for a moment before he looked down at the pale hand holding his own. The people in the room were watching fascinated and even April had forgotten about the showy introduction she had wanted to make.

November was watching everything with a sharp look in his eyes and, had one of his team-mates (April) seen that, they would have wondered just what put him in such a bad mood that had already lasted for almost a week.

A barely audible voice broke the silence in the room and everyone who knew about a Doll's incapability of making own decisions and having own emotions stared astonished as July answered to Hei's question.

"It's July."

The Chinese man's smile widened and he gently squeezed the smaller hand in his grasp.

"It's nice to meet you then, July-kun!" The assassin's voice was cheerful as he said that, silently pleased at the Doll's reaction to him.

Still kneeling, he turned to April and proceeded to ask her for her name. Still surprised by July's voluntary answer to a stranger, she only managed to say her name, forgoing any fancy speeches.

"It's nice to meet you too, April-san!"

_I wonder why they don't use a fake name like November does – I guess they just couldn't be bothered with it and a Doll _ would_ have difficulties using a fake-name…_

His greeting snapped the dark-skinned woman out of her daze and she pouted as she replied to that.

"How come you say my name with a suffix? You don't do that with Jack!"

Hei was startled by that – living in Japan had made him grow used to using suffixes to the point where he didn't even think about using them anymore, which made April's comment even more startling.

Had he really been calling Jack just by his first name? The assassin was taken aback when he found that, yes, he had been calling the Brit by only his first name for some time now.

_Why didn't I notice?_

Immediately he started to apologise to November and told him that from now on he would use a suffix.

The older man just looked at him for a moment before he grumbled something under his breath.

"Excuse me, what did you say?"

Hei looked at Jack questioning – he was standing again and July's hand and his had parted, but now his hand was lying on top of the boy's head in a calming gesture.

The taller blonde glowered, but he reluctantly looked into the younger man's eyes and answered clearly.

"You don't have to use any suffixes with me Shengshun, after all, I don't use them either."

The both of them just looked at each other for a moment, midnight blue meeting kingfish blue eyes and neither of them really noticed anything after their gazes locked.

The room seemed to melt away and only April's giggling remained.

Startled by her laughter, both of them snapped out of the trance they had fallen into. Confused Hei shook his head, wondering just what in the world had happened, November doing the same, just less obviously.

Jack's team-member grinned at them with mirth, before she started to tease them.

"Ahh... Young love is such a wonderful thing, isn't it guys? You get to know each other well, you slowly start to drop suffixes, you get lost in your partner's eyes, you start to kiss and proceed to slowly explore each other's bodies and-", she was cut off by November's angry stare. The Contractor replied slowly and carefully, but didn't even try to hide the rage in his voice.

"If you open your mouth one more time to let out something as ridiculous as this, I swear I'll put glue in your precious beer to keep it shut, April."

The woman, while loud and boisterous, was still a Contractor and knew when she should shut up, so she simply held up her hands in a placative gesture, not wanting to antagonize the man who could freeze her beer into clumps and sell it as ice-cream to alcoholics. At that thought, she snatched her bag from a nearby table and protectively cradled it against her body, cooing to the many beer cans that occupied it.

Hei, in the meantime, had stayed quiet, a blush lingering on his face, though another strange sensation welled up in his chest when he realised that November was probably in such a bad mood because of something the Chinese man had done – why else would the normally controlled Brit protest that vehemently to something that would normally only amuse him?

Not wanting to let this train of thought continue he looked to Misaki-san for help. Noticing that he was obviously uncomfortable, the police-officer gifted him with a gentle smile and announced that, now that their translator was here, they could question the woman that had been found with her child.

Quickly agreeing, Saito opened the door and beckoned everyone to follow him. July slipped out from under Hei's hand and moved to walk by April's side.

November walked last in line, while Saito led the little procession with Misaki walking a little behind him.

To his own surprise, Hei felt sick.

He had a very bad feeling about what was about to happen and he could only try and tell himself that his instinct was wrong and that he was only still stressed by the mission about Yin.

Even in his mind it didn't sound very convincing.

Saito-san, in the meantime, was explaining what he had to do.

"While we don't really think that the woman has anything directly to do with the murder, we'd like you to ask her what happened as she's probably a witness. It will probably take you some time to get her to open up to you, since she was quite shaken and refused to talk to anyone."

The man smiled at him over his shoulder, obviously trying to look encouraging (and failing quite miserably). "Don't worry about it and just be yourself – I'm sure that will be enough to get her to open up to you!"

_If I behave like myself, she won't open up to me – she will run to the door, banging against it and demand that _ _**the door** _ _be opened up._

Hei's thoughts were pessimistic, to say the least.

* * *

So, this is the next chapter – I hope I didn't disappoint with the length.

An earlier update in exchange for chapter-length – I hope it's not a bad deal.

Anyway, I hope you enjoyed reading this! The next few parts will be a little darker, since they'll explain Hei's past, but I hope you'll enjoy them anyway.

Yours,

TTF

Many thanks to shoeterfly for pointing out the mistake I made when November threatened to freeze April's mouth shut. He can't really say that with someone who doesn't know about Contractors in the room (though we all know that Hei knows).


	3. Chapter 3

Shades of Blue

Chapter 2

A/N: I hope this chapter isn't too confusing and boring and I hope you like the length (it could have been longer, but then you would have had to wait for some time, since I'm going to be quite busy in the next few weeks…)

Well I hope you enjoy this part!

* * *

Hei was tense when the door to the interview room was opened and when he saw just for whom he had to interpret for, it was all he could do not to brutally murder the woman in front of him.

She was about ten years older than him, while the girl in her lap was around five years old. The child was asleep, but even with her face half buried in the older woman's clothes it was easy to see that they were mother and daughter.

There existed only a few people that Hei hated, loathed, despised and wished would die, but one such person was now in front of him.

A small, still relatively sane part of his mind was worried about his increasingly violent temper, but it was quickly overwhelmed by the larger, less sane, more impulsive and definitely more wounded part of him.

He was able to restrain himself only because of the small girl the woman cradled against her body and the fact that he had several extremely dangerous people around himself – two of them being Contractors.

Hei schooled his face into its usual carefree mask and hoped that nobody had noticed the fury and hate on his face before he had covered them up. He continued to look at the woman and noticed that she didn't seem surprised to see him – in fact she looked almost happy.

_Good to know that at least one of us is…_

The assassin forced his lips to form a smile that could pass as genuine and slowly walked to the woman he knew under the name Wû Mei Ling and the child he identified as her daughter.

He dimly heard Misaki-san tell him that they would be in the observation room and that his conversation with the woman would be recorded, but only nodded in reply.

The assassin heard the door close behind him and kept on walking until he was in front of the woman.

"_What are you doing here Mei Ling?"_

Hei's voice was warm and pleasant, but there was no mistaking the loathing he felt for the Chinese woman.

"_I'm here because of Yîng and the Syndicate."_

Mei Ling looked at him sadly and the dark haired man was too surprised that she had mentioned the organisation he worked for to stop her from continuing.

"_Yîng is my husband's and my daughter and she is a Contractor."_

The small girl in her arm stirred, almost as if she knew that someone talked about her, but after Mei rocked her a little, shushing her gently, she quieted again.

Hei slowly let himself sink in one of the nearby chairs, already dreading the conversation that was to follow – everything that had something to do with the syndicate was complicated, messy and more often than not involved some kind of bloodshed.

He braced himself, shoved his resentment in the back of his mind and concentrated on what she was saying.

"_I know that you aren't happy to see me and you have the right to hate me with every fibre of your being, but please hear me out. It's about Yîng – she is an innocent and you have no reason to hold a grudge against her, other than her being my daughter."_

Hei's eyes narrowed bitterly – it seemed that Mei knew that his weakness for children hadn't changed in all the years of not seeing each other. He always tried to avoid harming innocents and most children were innocent – even if they were Contractors.

"_Talk."_

It was the first non-hostile word he had said to her since they had last seen each other ten years ago and the assassin wished that he had never had to speak it.

Wû Mei Ling nodded and as her story burst out of her colourless lips, Hei noticed the state she was in – she was gaunt, her skin a sickly pale, dark rings under her eyes and exhaustion was clearly visible on her face.

"_After we… parted ways… ten years ago, everything went well for a while. My husband and I moved to a small village and with the little money we managed to salvage from the raid, we managed to open a shop. We avoided trouble and nothing happened for several years."_

She quieted and it seemed to be difficult for her to continue the story.

"_Just after the Heaven's Gate vanished, I gave birth to a beautiful little girl – we named her Yîng. Even after that everything was normal and quiet, but just when she had turned four, she warned us that we would be robbed and killed if we stayed at our house that day. You can imagine just how shocked we were that our baby had said something like that, but when she looked at us, we suddenly knew. She had the same expression on her face that Xîng had after she… turned."_

Mei's own eyes were empty and she was completely lost in the past. The childhood nickname of his sister startled Hei and for a moment he wondered if she knew what had happened to his sister.

"_My husband and I were afraid, but we followed her advice and left the shop, going to a friend and staying the night. The next day, when we had returned, we saw that some vandals had broken into our house and had completely ransacked it. It was terrible but it was worse to know that we couldn't deal with the fact that our daughter was a Contractor that could see the future – also because of what happened after Xîng turned. Then a man showed up."_

She quieted again and Hei resisted the urge to tell her to hurry up. He was painfully aware of a pair of ice-blue eyes watching his every move from the observation room and he was uneasy about November 11's strange mood and behaviour.

Though he didn't say anything to indicate impatience, Mei Ling started to talk again – this time faster and her words were rushed, not reminiscent.

"_The man that came to us was a part of the syndicate and he made us an offer. He would take Yîng from us, we would get a lot of money and he promised that he would take good care of her and educate her about how to use her powers safely."_

Fury entered the mother's eyes and her arms tightened around her daughter.

"_My husband was all for it, saying that he didn't know how to deal with a Contractor, but I refused. I was shocked that he would willingly give away his own daughter and we had a large fight. When he realised that I wouldn't stand for his offer, the man from the organisation told me that I could come with him and Yîng and I accepted – my husband decided to stay behind._

_He took us to a different part of the country and we lived in a large house – I took care of the household and Yîng apparently learned how to use her power. The man was ecstatic to have her as a student and said that she had no… remuneration?"_

The Chinese woman seemed unsure about the correctness of the word, but continued without pausing.

"_It went on like that for several weeks, until I noticed that Yîng spoke less and less and the man seemed to be less pleased, as my daughter didn't want to use her power – after some time I managed to coax the reason out of her."_

She looked into Hei's eyes and spoke the next sentences slowly, as if to make sure that he followed her words.

"_It wasn't true that she had no price to pay – in fact she pays a large one every time she uses her power. Her… remuneration… is her life-span. Every time she uses her power, she loses five years of her life."_

Realisation hit the younger man and now Hei knew how she had found him, why she was here, what she wanted and why she looked that haggard.

This time he spoke slowly, still surprised at the revelation.

"_When you found out about it, you tried to leave, but of course the syndicate refused to let you go – they wouldn't want to lose such a useful ability, after all. So you fled with Yîng – you used her power to find me and now you want me to do something about your situation."_

Mei Ling looked at him and silently agreed to his statement. The assassin leaned back in his seat and looked back at her, before he mustered the small girl they had talked about.

She was short for her age and seemed almost frail with her pale skin and short raven hair. He felt his heart clench when he noticed that she reminded him of Pai – they didn't really resemble each other, but his sister had had the same half empty, half pleased expression on her face when she had slept, as Yîng had had.

As always in recent times when Pai cmae to his thoughts, his mind wandered to a blonde Brit and Hei couldn't help but wonder how the older man's face looked when he slept, before he banished these thoughts to the darkest corner of his mind and concentrated on the situation.

The assassin looked at the woman and asked the question that had plagued him since he had realised that she wanted something from him.

"_What makes you think that I can help you? In case you haven't noticed, I work for the syndicate. I doubt that they would be very pleased with me if I simply decided to help you out."_

It wasn't Mei Ling's voice that answered and both adults looked surprised as Yîng started to reply to Hei's question.

"_I saw you helping, that's why I think that you can do something! Mama didn't think that you would, but you will, right?"_

The dark-haired man looked into the girl's eyes and cursed his weakness for children and Pai – the girl's ability wasn't something that killed others actively, so she was still relatively innocent and she reminded him of Pai, despite looking nothing like his sister with her raven hair and onyx eyes.

Hei closed his eyes. He knew several people, several Contractors, whom he had met in the war around the Heaven's Gate, who disliked the organisation and owed him a favour. If he could get Yîng out of the country to these people, he knew that she would be safe. On the other hand, he knew that it was close to impossible to get Mei Ling away too, and the people he knew didn't look kindly to normal humans.

The assassin opened his eyes and made a decision.

"_I can get Yîng to safety, but not you."_ He looked at the woman across him and when she opened her mouth to protest, he stopped her.

_It has nothing to do with my grudge. I would like you to die a slow and painful death as retribution for what you and __**your husband**__ did to me and… Xîng, but it has nothing to do with that. I simply can only get one of you out of the country to safety and the people who can grant said security don't like non-Contractors – even if I manage to get both of you away, they would never accept you."_

It was a simple statement, but it successfully stopped her complaints – in fact, she now looked like she was about to cry.

Ignoring her distress, Hei continued to talk.

_Since you opposed the organisation I assume that you're willing to part with your daughter for her own safety. Now I have to ask you a few questions and we need to create a story we can tell the police."_

Mei Ling looked defeated and cradled her Yîng closer to her, while she nodded. The child in her arms looked completely unbothered by the fact that her mother couldn't stay with her. Hei was again reminded that the girl was a Contractor and was too rational and too cold-blooded to be fazed by something like this – after all, their kind only looked out for themselves.

"_Who was the man that was found dead near you?"_

The answers now came quickly.

"_He was somebody the syndicate sent after us, but I managed to get rid of him."_

The dark haired man had to admire her courage – not many people could dispose of someone that followed them – especially when said stalker was from the organisation.

"_Since when have you been fleeing?"_

"_It's been around three weeks."_

Hei was even more impressed now – it really was a feat to resist captivity for such a long time.

"_Did you notice anything strange about the organisation's men?"_

This time Mei paused and thought for some time. She frowned while she answered.

"_Yes. I don't know how important it is, but I do know that all of them seemed a little… desperate to get their hands on Yîng. Desperate and greedy."_

The assassin frowned too. It was rare for Contractors to be that motivated by a simple order, so it was possible that the syndicate had set out a big reward for catching the two of them. It was unusual for the organisation to do something like that, but he supposed that, considering Yîng's ability, it was probable.

It would be interesting to know just what a powerful group like the syndicate was that desperate to find out.

"_Now we need a cover-story for the police. I'll tell you your story and, in case their real translator shows up, you tell him what I tell you now."_

Mei Ling nodded before she asked what he wanted to do about the recording of their conversation.

Hei smiled dryly at how she had fooled the police into thinking that she didn't understand them – she was an intelligent woman and he knew that she had had a strict upbringing that concentrated on languages.

He then told her that she should leave the destruction of said recording to him and proceeded to tell her what she should say.

"_Your name is Wei Mei Ling and the dead man is your husband. He arranged the trip to Japan for a holiday and, since he took care of all the formalities, you didn't know how to contact anyone._

_You were walking around and when you accidentally walked into the less trustworthy part of the town, you were mugged and your husband was killed. You are originally from a rural village deep in the mountains of China, so you don't really know anything about cities, since your husband was a controlling bastard who kept you in his house and didn't let you go out. Can you repeat that?"_

The Chinese woman nodded and Hei was satisfied – he knew she had a good memory.

He then turned to Yîng.

"_You also have to remember this story and make up something that fits it. You were locked up too and didn't get to go out much. I doubt that they'll ask you something important, but just to be on the safe side think of how to react to a question."_

The girl nodded and Hei stood up. He was glad that he could leave the room containing someone of his past that he would rather forget.

He walked out of the door without looking back at the two females and entered the observation room. He almost collided with November 11, who had obviously been waiting for him to finish talking with the woman. He sent the man a startled look and opened his mouth to say something, but was interrupted by April.

"Don't worry about Mr. Weird, he is just jealous that you got along that well with that woman."

Jack glared at his team-mate and took several steps away from the younger man.

"I wasn't jealous. Did you forget who I am? I don't **get** jealous April! I'm just impatient to hear about the case!"

Hei arched his eyebrows at the vehement denial and realised that Misaki-san and Saito-san were looking a little irritated by the dark-skinned woman's jibes. July was expressionless, but that was probably because he was already used to the woman and she rarely bothered him.

He shrugged inwardly and walked further into the room while he explained 'Wei Mei Ling's and Wei Yîng's story'.

He noticed the recording device on a table beneath the observation-window, leant against said table and put his hands far behind him, pretending to put his weight on them. They were almost touching the device.

_This is going to hurt._

The assassin feigned exhaustion, when suddenly the recorder sent off sparks and burst into flames.

Hei jumped away from the table when he heard the small explosion, though he couldn't prevent his hand from being burnt. He was startled when November suddenly pulled him away from the table, while the rest of them frantically put out the fire. The older man looked at him coolly, while asking whether he was alright.

As answer the assassin held up his burnt hands and the Brit cursed and dragged him out of the room by his elbow.

"The kid's injured, so I'll take him to the nurse-station!" The blonde paused for a moment and looked at April. "Don't wait up!"

Hei could see the other man's smirk as the dark skinned woman squealed happily at the comment.

"**I knew it! They have something going!"**

The Chinese man stared at the older Contractor annoyed. He doubted that the age difference between the two of them was big enough to let the blonde call him 'kid' and now he would also have to deal with an apparent yaoi-fangirl that was hell-bent on misunderstanding their relationship as something romantic.

_What exactly is our relationship anyway? I wouldn't call us friends, and we're definitely not dating, but we're also more than acquaintances, so what exactly is the 'relationship' between Li Shengshun and Jack Simon?_

While Hei had been musing, November had pulled him to the nurse-office/sick-bay of the police department.

There was a piece of paper on the door that the nurse had apparently put there.

"Due to an emergency, the nurse is unavailable today."

The older one glowered at it before he pulled open the door and pushed the Chinese man into the room. Jack looked at the assassin for a moment before the blonde sighed and ordered the younger one on one of the beds while the MI6 agent looked for bandages and ointment.

Hei obeyed and watched November, thinking that maybe he would get an explanation of why the other one had been in such a bad mood the whole day.

_Though I'm not sure I can take any more surprises…_

* * *

November watched Shengshun out of the corner of his eyes, silently mustering the younger man. The Brit was unsettled and, if he was honest with himself, he had been since he had met the Chinese man.

The more time they spent together, the more the MI6 agent had the feeling that he was losing control of himself – it wasn't a feeling he liked to have and, in fact, he would like to not be able to feel anything at all again. It was better to be a cold-hearted bastard than a puddle of goo – one that he would inevitably turn into, if the warm, almost heated, emotion he felt whenever he saw Shengshun was anything to go by.

Jack had thought that he would be able to eliminate the problem simply by avoiding the Chinese man, but it seemed that they always met somehow.

Another thing that had been bothering him was the answer the younger one had given him when the blonde had found him hurt in the streets and had asked how he had gotten injured.

It hadn't taken him a lot of time to figure out just what was strange about the answer, in fact, when he had gone home after taking the dark haired man to the hospital and April had waited for him to laugh at the bruise he had gotten that day, he had known just what had bothered him.

Finally finding the ointment and bandages he needed, he turned back to face Shengshun and, after dragging a chair to the bed where the Chinese man was seated and sitting down, Jack put the things he had gathered into a pile on the bed. The younger man stared at him surprised, but November ignored the midnight blue eyes that were looking at him.

He slowly moved his hands to the zipper of the dark haired one's jacket and started to try and get it off of his patient.

"It will be easier to bandage the wounds when you're not wearing a coat."

Shengshun agreed hesitantly and, with their joined effort, they managed to get the green cloth off without damaging the younger man's hands further.

Relieved that they had managed to overcome that obstacle, November took one of the burnt hands carefully into his one of his own.

The damage wasn't pleasant to look at – the back of the limb was already forming blisters and the skin around them was charred and an angry red. Grimacing, Jack spread the ointment onto the wounds, admiring the other man's self-control – many would have been crying because of the pain, but the dark haired one bore it without a sound and without a complaint.

Wrapping up the first hand, November tried to think of a way that would make Shengshun open up to him. Starting to take care of the second hand, Jack decided to break the silence that had settled over the room.

"It's nice to see that your shoulder fully healed, though you should be a lot more careful if you want to grow old with all of your limbs. After all," the blonde continued, this time amused with the thought that had come to him, "it would be such a shame if something happened to someone as gorgeous as you."

The smile on Jack's face was fake enough to put him into jail for fraud, but there was also something charming about it and the Brit guessed that it was the only reason why he wasn't a man-shaped stain on one of the walls.

The blonde was smirking as he watched Shengshun's eyes widen in surprise before they shot him a glare – maybe angering the man wasn't the best way to get closer to him, but the agent couldn't help himself, as he was still angry with the Chinese man.

Before the injured one could say something, November continued to talk while he was still off-balance.

"You were telling us about the woman and her child before we were interrupted."

He watched interested as a shadow passed through the younger man's eyes – something had upset the brunette and Jack wondered what it had been.

In the months he had been stalking Shengshun he hadn't been able to read anything in the Chinese's orbs until the very end, where it had gotten obvious that the stalked one had been about to lose his temper. The brunette's face had been very expressive and November had been able to read in it like a book, but the eyes had stayed closed.

Sometimes, when the light hit them, the blonde had been struck at how _dead_ they seemed – more reminiscent of a moon- and star-less night sky than human orbs.

_People say that eyes are the window to one's soul – I wonder what that says about Shengshun…_

Inwardly shaking his head, he started to pay attention to the story that the Chinese told him – one that he knew to be a lie.

Eyes hardening, the MI6 agent vowed that he would get the truth today and if he had to freeze it out of the younger one – he hated it when people lied to him.

* * *

That's it from me for today! If you find mistakes, please tell me and I'll fix them!

Yours,

TTF


	4. Chapter 4

Shades of Blue

A/N: Well, what to say about this chapter? It's mostly a series of flashbacks that explain Hei's past and family background. I hope that the conversations between people aren't too boring and I also hope that the name thing isn't too confusing. I didn't want to call Pai 'Pai', so I simply called her Xîng and since I didn't want to give other people names, they don't really have one, so I hope I don't confuse you.

The characters are probably a little OOC (or too IC…), but since everyone is young I hope that's okay.

Also, it stops rather abruptly, but I'm quite busy for the next few days and this part reached the length for a relatively long chapter, so I thought 'Why not?'

I hope I didn't cut at a too inconvenient part… Anyway, I wish you good reading!

Translations:

xîng - star

gê ge - older brother

mei mei - little sister

mu qin - mother

* * *

Hei watched the older man as he reiterated the background he had created for Mei Ling. November had been acting strange and the Chinese man knew that it had something to do with him – the way these kingfisher-blue orbs had been glued to him had been more than enough to tell him that.

"…because of that, they couldn't contact anyone and were picked up by the police."

He finished the fabricated history of what had happened and waited for the blonde to say something. His hands were aching, but it wasn't the worst injury he'd ever had – after all he had fought Contractors since before he had become one himself and he had met many that used abominable powers.

"You do know that I know that what you are telling me is bullshit, do you?"

The other man's calm voice was a stark contrast to his cold, unforgiving eyes and Hei reacted on autopilot.

"What makes you think that I lied?" With a hurt and confused expression on his face, his surprised voice and his head tilted slightly to the right, he was a picture of innocence. Jack's mouth tightened into a thin line, before the blonde slowly started to speak.

"The way you talked to the woman was too familiar for you to not know her and besides that, you addressed her with her name, which she didn't mention at all. I can't speak Mandarin, but I can listen to names and besides that, it wouldn't be the first time you lied to me. Ever since I took you to the hospital there has been something that bothered me until I found out what it was."

The assassin forced himself to stay relaxed, but he eyed the door and windows in case he had to make a quick getaway. Almost as if the agent had realised what Hei was thinking, he wrapped a hand tightly around the brunette's wrist. The assassin only noticed vaguely that the older Contractor had finished bandaging his hand.

"What I'm talking about is, that apparently a normal thug was able to overpower and injure you, while you didn't even have bruised knuckles or skin or blood of the guy under your nails – almost as if you didn't even try to defend yourself."

The Chinese man stared at November, unsettled that his lie had been discovered that easily.

"What makes you think that I wasn't simply overpowered? The man was taller and heavier than me – is it really that improbable that something like this happened?"

Hei stared at the older man challengingly – he didn't know just why the man was that upset about these discrepancies in his story, but it never was a good thing when people decided to investigate him. Besides, the assassin knew that, even when Jack knew that something strange was going on, the blonde wouldn't be able to do anything about it – the syndicate didn't allow anyone to find out about them or their objectives, whatever they may be.

November stared back at him, the frigid expression in his kingfisher-blue eyes chilling the brunette to the core.

"I think that it's quite improbable, because, on the same day, you managed to punch me and I am – in case you haven't noticed yet – taller and heavier than you, too."

Hei interrupted the older one, still pretending not to know what Jack was talking about.

"I only managed to do that because I caught you off-guard and you know that!"

November's reply was sharp and it was obvious that the MI6 agent was quickly losing his patience.

"You would have been able to do that even if I had been expecting it – the punch was too fast for me to stop and I noticed even before that, that you've obviously been trained in some kind of martial art. I know how to defend myself, after all I'm not the best agent that the British Military Intelligence has for nothing and, if even I wasn't able to stop your attack, I doubt that a common mugger was able to harm you, had you defended yourself." While talking, Jack's voice had been growing calmer than before and the next question was spoken almost silkily.

"The question is, now, whether the story you fed me was true and, in case it was, why you didn't defend yourself. Well? Are you going to explain this to me and will you tell me the true story of the women in the interviewing room, or will I have to tell Misaki and the rest of the team what I found out?"

This time the Brit's gaze was challenging and Hei was feverishly trying to find a way out of this situation – escaping through one of the windows didn't sound like a bad idea – also because they were on the ground floor – but with his wrist caught in a vice-grip, practically chaining him to the blonde, the assassin didn't think that that would be a good idea, after all the older man could freeze him as soon as he twitched with a muscle that didn't need to move. His mind racing through his possibilities, the brunette finally came to a satisfactory result – one that would help him in the long run. He had, after all, noticed that the blonde seemed to have a – uncharacteristic for a Contractor – soft spot for children and he didn't seem to be corrupt, so maybe he could get the blonde to help him get Yîng out of the country.

Having made his decision, the Chinese man looked November square in the eye and answered.

"I'm not going to tell you about how I was wounded, because I don't want to talk about it, but," he raised his voice a little to keep Jack from interrupting, "I am going to tell you about Mei Ling and Yîng – will that satisfy you?"

A strange expression flashed across the agent's face – one that he recognised, because both of his former team-mates (other than his sister) had looked at him like that too sometimes, when he had cradled Pai against him while she had been paying her remuneration. Unfortunately, Hei had never been able to figure out just what that expression meant – in fact he still didn't know, but he filed it away for later study.

"Mei Ling and Yîng? You don't even say their names with suffixes. Who are they to you? Is the child yours?"

For a moment Hei was reminded of the endless, embarrassing questions November would ask him while stalking him and he was surprised to notice that he had almost missed the blonde's inquisitiveness – almost.

Closing his eyes, the assassin decided that the best thing he could do was to tell the older man the edited truth about his relationship with Mei. It wasn't something he liked to remember, but it seemed that the Brit could tell when he lied and he didn't want to make the older one even more curious about his past. Curiosity could kill and, while Jack was a Contractor and knew when to stop asking, the blonde had been getting more and more emotional and daring in the time they had spent together – it almost reminded him of the time he had been fighting in the war around the Heaven's Gate – his team-mates had, at first, been cold and unfeeling, but after some time they had started to behave strangely too.

Tiredly Hei opened his eyes again and started to talk. He would edit his story a lot, but he hoped that November's instinctive knowledge about his lies was restricted to full lies and would let him get away with half truths.

"You are right, I know the both of them, but not in the way you obviously think I know them. Mei Ling isn't my lover and Yîng isn't my child, but I am related to them.

Yîng is my niece and Mei is… was… my sister-in-law – she is the wife of my older brother."

Tiredly the assassin started to tell the edited story of how he had gotten into the mess that was his current life.

* * *

_Quietly a s__even-year-old Hei crept through the house he, his younger sister and his mother lived in. The boy was supposed to be sleeping, but the sky had looked incredibly beautiful that night and he wasn't able to resist the temptation of sneaking out and go star-gazing. Seeing stars clearly was one of the advantages of living in the country, where there was little light from houses._

_H__umming a theme song in his head, he paused for a moment to peer around a corner – things were looking good, as his mother was already asleep._

_Eager to get out of his home Hei quickened his steps and soon he had reached the back door – he had learned that the chance of getting caught by his mom and getting a lecture was considerably less threatening when he didn't use the front door._

_Eyes glittering with mischief, the boy slowly slid the key he had 'borrowed' earlier into the lock. Just as he was about to turn it, opening his way to freedom, he heard a noise behind him. Hei quickly turned around and peered into the darkness of the room, tense and fully expecting his mother to switch on the light and start yelling at him. After several seconds, he managed to make out a small, petite figure in the shadows and relaxed immediately._

"Mei mei, what are you doing?" _The boy's voice was an oxymoron of whispering and yelling, his heart still beating fast._

_His sister came closer and he could see the sky-blue colour of her eyes before he heard her quiet voice._

"I heard you get out of bed and wanted to know what you're doing." _She looked at him curiously._

"What **are** you doing gê ge?"

_Grumbling under his breath, the boy answered the question, telling his sister of his intention of going star-gazing.__ As soon as the words 'star-gazing' left his mouth, Xîng's eyes lit up with excitement and a pleading expression crossed the girl's face, asking a question without using words._

_Hei couldn't help but curse his sister's orbs that had the same effect on him as his mother's – he could never deny the both of them anything when they looked at him like that. Hesitating only for a moment, he motioned the girl to come closer and turned his attention back to the door. He turned the key and waited for the quiet 'click' that told him that the door was open. Grinning brightly, he slowly opened the door, mindful of the usual creaking, careful that it wouldn't be loud enough to wake up his mother._

_When the crack was wide enough to let him slip through, he turned to his sister who had been watching him in awe. Feeling embarrassed, Hei cleared his throat and started to talk to her sternly._

"If you want to come with me, you have to do what I say. Mom would kill me if I lost you, do you understand?"

_The girl nodded enthusiastically and whispered her assent. Satisfied, the older one took his sister's small hand into his own and together they walked out of the house._

I'll take her to my favourite spot on the hill – I bet she'll like it as much as I do, what with the lake being there and all…

_Eager to get to his star-gazing spot, Hei quickened his steps, so that he and Xîng were running up the way on the hill, passing trees and bushes. When they were a safe distance away from their home, Xîng started to laugh happily, while her brother started to grin._

_It was the start of a tradition that they would continue for many, many years._

* * *

_Bored, Hei looked out of the window, watching the storm and rain that were raging across the landscape. He and Xîng wouldn't be able to go star-gazing at night as they had done almost every night for the last six months…_

Though even if there was no storm, mei mei isn't feeling well so I guess it's alright.

_Xîng had come down with a cold and was now resting in her room, curled up in her bed._

_Sighing deeply, he vaguely heard the voice of his mother as she talked to someone on the phone._

"_You want to… but they are still just children and I don't think they're ready… alright… as you wish…"_

_At fist she had been defiant, but she quickly yielded, which was completely uncharacteristic of his mother – she never obeyed anyone and had an iron will._

_The only time he had seen her submit to anyone was the day he had first met his father. At the thought of that man, a wave of disgust and dislike swept over the boy – he would never forget what the man had done when he had visited them last time…_

_When he had been younger, he had asked his mother practically every day just who his father was and what had happened to him – he had wished, he still wished, he hadn't been that persistent when he had finally been told the truth a few days before that man visited the first and only time._

Good riddance you old coot!

_Hei really didn't know just why his mother liked that man that much. Again he sighed deeply, this time because he remembered the story that he had been told._

_His mother had been a well known and respected private tutor and had been called to a big and rich household to teach the nine-year-old heir of the family._

_She had arrived and had been greeted by the head of the family and father of the boy she was supposed to teach. The married father, who had a quite vicious and extremely jealous wife. Despite that obstacle, his mother had immediately fallen in love with the man and he, taken by her intelligence and good looks, had offered to make her his mistress – she had agreed._

_A year later Hei had been born and she had been moved to a small house at the outskirts of the city, almost in the countryside – far enough away from the city to not be bothered, but still close enough to that man for Xîng to be born two years later._

_Sometimes she still visited her love._

_His mother had tutored them since they had been able to remember, teaching them with games and rewarding them when they did good work and she was paid a lot of money to teach her children and to keep quiet about them. The only thing that Hei disliked about his mother was that she was naïve – she still believed that the father of her children loved her._

_Frowning, the boy thought back to the visit his 'parent' had paid them two years ago when he had been five years old._

_His mother had been stressed for several weeks and had gone into a cleaning rage that swept through the whole house – the next day a man had stood in front of the door that Hei had opened, too curious to see what kind of visitors they had to wait for his mother._

_He would always remember the imposing figure that had been standing in front of him._

_Tall statue, broad shoulders, short dark hair, tanned skin, an attractive face and dark brown eyes – even then, the boy had been able to tell that he didn't like the man._

_There was something strange about him – something heartless, cold and terrifying – something which apparently only he was able to feel, as his mother loved the man and his sister liked him too._

_Hei hadn't known just why he had felt that threatened by the older male – in fact, he still didn't know - but every time they had been within feet of each other, he had wanted to either flee, or hurt his father – it had been frightening to feel such a destructive emotion. It had been on that single visit that the boy had learned to act._

_He had hidden his dislike from his family and pretended to be as taken with the clan-head as his sister and mother, but on the inside he resented the one who called him 'son' as if they were close._

_The child had hated it, but he knew that, should he protest to the title, his mother would be disappointed and if there was one thing that he couldn't bear, it was the knowledge of having let down his mom._

_The sound of a door closing snapped the boy out of his thoughts and he looked up just in time to see his mother vanish into the kitchen – the door to the hall, where the phone stood, was closed tightly._

_Hei frowned when he noticed the worried expression on the woman's face – he didn't like it when she was unhappy. Quietly he stood and, careful not to make a sound, followed her into the room, watching as she started to take bowls and plates out of the cupboards._

_He silently watched her for a moment and, as always, marvelled at how much his sister resembled their mother – sky blue eyes, light brown hair, tanned skin, a beautiful face and a kind smile._

_Compared with his own ink black locks, his midnight blue eyes, pale skin and rather stoic expressions, he sometimes wondered if they even were related at all. He didn't even look like his father._

Thank goodness for that.

_His mother was busy cooking and Hei wondered why – it was already late in the evening and they had already eaten. Deciding that being silent had outlived its usefulness, he voiced his question curiously, after making sure that the older woman wasn't using a knife or something else damaging._

"What are you doing mu qin?"

_As expected, she whirled around, a plate slipping from he fingers and crashing on the floor, while her eyes were wide and surprised. As soon as she realised just who had startled her, she rolled her eyes and knelt down to pick up the pieces of plate that were scattered in the room._

"You are going to be the death of me eventually, do you know that? Sometimes I wonder if one of my ancestors was a cat and decided to let you inherit its ability to sneak up on people! Honestly!"

_She chided him gently, but the smile had returned to her face and it was obvious that she was both amused and used to her son's tendency to sneak up on people._

_Hei smiled back at her, relived that the worry had vanished from her face. Her statement also gave him the opportunity to ask his mother a question he had been aching to ask since he had noticed that he didn't look like his parents at all._

"That would explain just why I don't look like you or father."

_He made sure that his voice sounded amused while he said that, while he inwardly cringed at having to call that man 'father'._

_The older woman was startled for a moment, before she laughed – to the boy's surprise, it sounded strained._

_She stopped laughing and, while it had sounded fake, the smile on her face was genuine and soft._

"That's not the reason you look different from me or your father."

_The grin that appeared on her face made her look years younger and more carefree._

_She sat down on a chair and, after putting the shards of the ruined plate in front of her onto the kitchen table, she motioned for him to sit down too._

_Careful not to cut himself on any remaining shards, the boy sat down on one of the chairs, curious about what she was going to tell him._

_Seeing that her son was comfortable, the woman started to talk, a reminiscent smile on her face._

"I've never told you about my parents, have I?"

_Seeing that her son shook his head, she sent him an affectionate look and continued to talk._

My father was a Chinese teacher – he went to England and taught science and math at a high school. That's where he met my mother. She was also a teacher and a few years older than him, but despite the age difference they fell in love and married a little later.

They had me, but because of her age and several difficulties with my birth, it was impossible for her to have another child – because of this I don't have any siblings."

_Hei listened to her story, eager to hear more about his grandparents and mother._

"Anyway, a few years later, when I was about six years old, my father got into a car accident and died because of his injuries. It was then that my mother decided to move to China, even though she knew that father didn't have any living relatives there. We moved to a small city, where my mother could teach English at a school. I decided then that I wanted to be a teacher – teaching others had brought my parents together and even though they had had to part, my mother managed to heal herself as she taught children in the country her husband grew up in."

_She laughed and this time it was honest and carefree, her eyes hazy as she remembered her parents._

"You probably think that I sound silly, but I always wished to find someone just like they did and when I met you father, it was love at first sight."

_When she saw the way he grimaced, she grinned, mischief clearly visible on her face._

"Don't look at me like that! One day you'll meet someone and just know: 'that's the one I want to spend the rest of my life with' and I'll be there at your wedding and laugh and tell everyone around me that you didn't believe in love at first sight when you were younger."

_Hei rolled his eyes, while his mother went on and on and practically started to plan his wedding – it was creepy when she started to ramble on and on and on and showed no sign of stopping._

The bad thing is that mei mei can do that too – I wonder why they don't need to breathe when they do that…

_The boy called his mother, interrupting her just as she was going on about with what kind of flowers he should decorate the room for his honeymoon._

What on earth is a 'honeymoon'?

_Bewildered he called her again, this time getting her attention. For a moment she looked confused, before she smiled sheepishly, clearing her throat and continuing her story._

"Sorry about that… Anyway, because of my mother was British, Xîng and I have a lighter coloration than usual in Asians – you on the other hand are a carbon copy of my father when he was young. I don't remember him well, since it has been a long time since he died, but mother used to show me pictures. Your resemblance to him is remarkable – if it weren't for your blue eyes, you could have been a clone of his."

_For a moment the smile on her face turned sad as she looked at him, in her thoughts comparing him to the man she once knew and called 'father'._

_Soon the moment was over and she brightened again, but Hei couldn't help but feel a little unsettled – maybe it was because his mother had called him an 'almost-clone', but mostly it was because she was behaving very strangely._

_Usually when he wanted to know something about their family-history he had to plead and whine in order for her to tell him something, but this time he hadn't even had to ask – a simple statement had gotten her to open up and then she talked with sadness in her eyes and tension in her thin shoulders._

_Mustering her for the tenth time this evening, Hei decided to push his luck – maybe his mother's sudden willingness to satisfy her son's curiosity would hold on for a few more questions._

"Mu qin, why are you acting that strangely? Does it have anything to do with the phone call from before?"

_He hesitated for a second before continuing with the next question._

"Was… father… the one to call you?"

_The boy flinched when his mother stood abruptly and went back to cooking, acting as if their conversation had never happened. For a moment he didn't dare to breathe, afraid that he had upset his mother but still hoping for some kind of answer._

_After working in silence for some time, the woman stopped moving and slowly turned around – the look on her face made Hei dread whatever she was going to say._

_She looked unhappy to the point of looking depressed, almost as if she had never been happy in the first place – the boy knew that nothing that could make the usually cheerful and mischievous woman look like that could be a good thing._

_And he was right._

_Gods above, he was right._

_With a single statement the woman that was his mother, his friend, his teacher and his confidant chilled him to the core and made him feel like he had been punched violently as all the air in him left his lungs._

"It was your father who called – he is going to come tonight to take you and Xîng with him. From now on you are going to live in his house – you, without me."

_Hei could almost hear both of their hearts break._

How am I going to tell this to mei mei?

* * *

_The two of them had been at their father's house for a few weeks and Hei wished they were back at home, with their mother and her sweet, gentle voice that called them by their names or sometimes affectionate nicknames – not this, never this._

_The moment they had arrived, people had looked at them as if they were trash, as if they were insects just waiting to be stepped on and they openly showed their feelings._

_The servants ridiculed them, the family was openly cruel and visitors wrinkled their noses in disgust – Hei was sure that hadn't it been for his sweet mei mei, he wouldn't have survived even this long in that torture-chamber these people called 'home'._

_Because the worst thing that had happened wasn't the ridicule, it wasn't the disgust, the resentment or the petty acts of dislike they were subjected to – no, it was worse, because their identity had been stolen._

_His name, his precious name, that his mother and sister had used to call out gently or angrily, or softly, or happily, had been taken away – and not just his, his sister's name too, had been taken from her._

_Shortly after they had arrived, their father's wife, the woman __**that man**__ had cheated on, had looked at them and asked them for their names – innocently, naively, __**stupidly**__, they had told that woman just what they were called and then she had said something that Hei would never, ever forgive her._

"Really? Such ugly names aren't welcome in my home. From now on you won't be called that and if I hear these words spoken by anyone, they will be punished severely! From now on you will answer to whatever you are called, no matter what! Do I make myself clear?"

_Her eyes had been as cold as ice – no, they had been even colder – and the__y demanded absolute obedience._

_The boy knew that life would never be the same for both Xîng and him._

_He had been__ right and this was the first, but definitely not the last time, that he cursed the bad luck that seemed to suddenly haunt his family._

_Maybe his mother had been right – maybe one of their ancestors had been a cat and had given Hei the ability to sneak up on people, had given him the abilities of a cat – that, together with his colouring and the sudden stroke of bad luck would explain a lot._

_After all, everyone knew that black cats were a sign of misfortune._

* * *

Well, after reading this part again, I read and read and nothing seems to happen…

That will (hopefully) change in the next chapter, and I hope you enjoyed this anyway.

If you find any mistakes, please tell me and I'll fix them!

This is version 2 of this chapter and I thank explodreamer for correcting my translations and for offering to continue to do so!

Really, thank you!

Yours,

TTF


	5. Chapter 5

Shades of Blue

Chapter 4

A/N: The first thing I have to do is apologize. I'm incredibly sorry for not updating for a whole month and I hope that the length of this chapter will at least partially make up for that.

I have several people to thank for this chapter: explodreamer, for the wonderful help with the translations, Shinrabansho, who helped me with characterisation and, most of all, GodessofWrath, who helped me with the plot, the decisions and always cheered me up! : )

Thank you for your help!

* * *

Translation:

míng yè - dark/bright night

yân - dark blue

xîng - star

gê ge - older brother

dà gê - eldest brother

dì di - younger brother

mei mei - little sister

hui - clever/intelligent

qin - hardworking

shé - snake/serpent

* * *

_Quietly an eight-year-old Hei walked through the dark corridors of the mansion he and Xîng lived in – nightly walks had become a habit for him and sometimes for his sister too._

_Since neither of them could go stargazing anymore, they had started this ritual to keep from getting too restless and it was working – for now._

_Wistfully Hei thought back to when they had lived with their mother – sometimes it seemed unbelievable to him that it hadn't even been a year since he had last seen her._

_He and Xîng had always been outside, running around and simply being active, but since they had arrived at this place, they had been forbidden from leaving the premises – of course, the one who had ordered this had been their 'stepmother'._

_In a way, Hei could understand her. It must be infuriating and humiliating for her to have to feed and accommodate the illegitimate children that her husband had had with a young half-Chinese, half-English woman – he just wished that she didn't take out her frustration on him and Xîng._

_Sighing inwardly, the boy could feel unrest rising inside of him and he wished that he had an outlet for his frustration too. He dreaded the day now, something that he had never thought was possible._

_At daytime he and his sister were subjected to the disapproving stares of everyone in the mansion, while at night nobody was around and he was free to explore the grounds and the rooms of his new home._

_Sadly he thought about how quiet his little sister had become._

_In the beginning she had been her usual self, but the obvious dislike that nobody tried to hide had worn on her, slowly but steadily, like a small river carving a path into a stone._

_After several unfair punishments, it seemed to her brother as if her supply of cheer had run out. It had made her more serious and there was always a sad gleam in her eyes when she looked at people._

_What was worse than that, though, was that her sadness was starting to turn into apathy and there was nothing that Hei could do about that._

_He had already tried to cheer her up, but every time he managed to make her smile, she seemed more distant than before and every time he felt the distance between them increase, the boy wanted to take his sister by her shoulders and shake her while yelling that it _would be okay, _that even if life was difficult now, surely it would get better in the future – but he didn't. He didn't do that because he knew that it would do more harm than good as his sister had always been stubborn and he had always seen her as someone fragile (which was a biased view, but as an older brother, who could blame him?) whom he wanted to protect and pushing her would just make her resent him and he didn't want that._

_They only had each other, after all, and Hei wouldn't be able to bear losing his only real human contact – the sister he loved more than anyone else – even if that human contact talked less and less and had stopped looking him into his eyes._

_Even if Xîng, who had clung to him at first, was now growing distant from him – accompanying him less and less on his evening strolls. Instead of going with her brother, she had taken to wandering around on her own, hiding in dark, empty rooms and falling asleep there._

_Hei was worried about this new habit of hers, but didn't say anything about it, instead it had become a habit for him to look for her and wake her up before she was found in the morning by servants – once he had been late in finding her and she had been punished by having to clean the whole floor alone and in a day._

_Another time where he had been too late in finding her, they had been separated for two whole weeks – it had been hell for both of them as they hadn't had any human contact while apart._

_At that point, both of them had positively loathed their step-mother and had sworn to never, ever forgive her for doing that to them._

_Both of their oaths were forgotten, when the both of them had stumbled across the woman on one of their nightly walks. Luckily for them, she hadn't noticed them, but it had been obvious that she had been too preoccupied with crying to notice them._

_Muffled sobs had shaken her body and she had cradled a framed picture against her body. Shocked the two of them had retreated and Xîng had told her brother that she had seen the picture while cleaning the floor – it had been a photography of her, her husband and a small boy, about six or seven years old and all of them had been smiling happily._

_It was that event that had given the children understanding and, despite the treatment she gave them, they could now see the grief in her eyes whenever she punished them._

_Another punishment that had been hard on his sister had been a temporary cancellation of her lessons with her brother and their tutor._

_Despite his dark musings, t__he boy couldn't help but smile as he thought about their teacher – an old, slightly batty lady, who pretended to be harsh, but was really very kind, as he and Xîng had found out._

_She was a lot like their mother in her teachings and she had a soft spot for them, which made learning relaxing and the siblings were always happy to talk to her about things that bothered them – Lady Hui Qin, as they called her, never told anyone what they talked about._

_When they had told her that they weren't allowed to use their names anymore, she had been shocked, but after some time she had told them something that made life for them more bearable._

"If you can't use the names that your mother gave you, you can simply name yourself, can't you? Life is something that constantly changes and there are people that change their names willingly whenever such a thing happens."

_Happily they had followed the advice, wondering why such a thing hadn't occurred to them._

_With Hei's sister, the naming had been easy – he had always affectionately called her Xîng and it was only logical for him to continue to do so._

_The boy had decided to let his sister name him, as it was only fair – he gave her a new identity and she gave him one._

_He had been surprised by the name she had picked out – Míng Yè, dark night – and he would like to know just why she had picked that one, but whenever he asked her, she just smiled and teasingly told him that it was something for only her to know._

_Still smiling wistfully and distracted by his thoughts, he was startled when he heard a sound from one of the rooms in front of him._

_Curiously he decided to investigate, knowing that it could get him into trouble, but the restlessness he was feeling was making him reckless._

_Carefully muffling his steps, he snuck to the door and quietly lowered himself to his knees. Waiting for a moment, he listened to the sounds that were coming from the room – it sounded like a person moving around and… hitting something? – made even more curious by these sounds, Hei slowly lowered the door handle and opened the door a little, just enough for him to look into the room._

_He was startled by what he saw – the room was a giant training room, with all kinds of equipment and one fourth of it was padded with soft mats, obviously thought for martial arts training._

_It took the boy a second to realise that the sounds had stopped and he couldn't see anyone training – hastily he looked around, just to find a pair of dark eyes just in front of him._

_Stunned and not really thinking about it, he tried to slam the door closed, but the man who had spotted him easily kept it open and Hei was sharply pulled into the room and flung on the padded floor of the martial arts part of the floor._

_Panting he sat on the mats and stared up at the one whose training he had interrupted._

_The boy was startled to find that the one he had thought to be a man, was only a teenager, about ten years older than him, tall, with dark hair and eyes._

_The teenager seemed to be as surprised as Hei was and the younger one of the two used that opportunity to muster the older one further._

_He was wearing black, baggy training pants and a simple white shirt, no shoes or socks and a towel hung around his neck, which he used to wipe sweat out of his eyes – there was also something familiar about his features, but the boy couldn't really pinpoint what it was._

_Raising his eyes again, the eight-year-old was startled to find that he had been mustered closely too, which made him decidedly uneasy. The older one seemed to notice this and an amused smile crossed his expression for a moment before it vanished again._

"You are… Yân, aren't you?"

_As soon as Hei heard that, anger replaced his anxiousness and unease – he hated the name that the people here had given him and after hearing it for months, without an end in sight, his patience was wearing thin._

"Don't call me that! It's not my name!"

_Glaring at the older boy, he was startled when the stern look on the older one's face melted away to make room for a teasing smile._

"How about I call you dì di then?"

_Stunned, Hei's glare turned into an incredulous stare – dì di? He didn't have an older brother, so what on earth was that boy talking about?_

_The teenager noticed that the younger one was confused and the teasing smile turned gentle._

"I guess that you're pretty confused, huh? Let me introduce myself. I'm your older half-brother Shé – it's nice to meet you dì di."

_For a moment, all the younger boy could do was gape shocked, before, slowly and slightly stuttering, a question formed on his lips._

"Y-You're my… older… brother?"

_The teenager sat down noisily and laughed a little, mischief clearly visible in his eyes._

"Yep, that's me. Wû Shé, eighteen years old, tall, dark, handsome, the mature, oldest son of the family, wickedly talented in martial arts, a genius at-"

_Shé's ravings were interrupted by an undignified snort and the teenager glared at the younger boy, clearly irritated by the lack of reverence his little brother showed him._

_After a second, mischief entered his eyes again and, before Hei could blink, the older one had pinned him to the mat he was sitting on._

_Angrily the younger of the two tried to free himself, but his efforts were useless against the taller and heavier boy._

"Well, what do you say? Is this enough to convince you of my talent?"

_The blue eyed child finally gave up and laid his head on the mat, glaring at his newly found brother – somehow he __was surprised at how easily the older one had gotten past his protective walls. He didn't really know just why he was that comfortable with that revelation, but the teenager's rather goofy and mischievous nature made it easy to trust him and he wasn't as shocked by the fact he had an older brother, as he was horrified by the older one's self-centred arrogance._

_Besides, unconsciously he had known that he had a brother, from his mother's story about meeting his father, where she had told him that she had been called to 'tutor the only son and heir of the family' a.k.a. first son of the man Hei despised._

_Deciding to give up on finding out just why he was at ease with the older one, Hei scoffed and mockingly answered to the question._

"Yeah, I'm really impressed. You managed to pin a child ten years younger, lighter and shorter to a mat, that hasn't had any training whatsoever – it's quite an accomplishment, let me tell you."

_Shé visibly deflated at the younger one's sarcastic words, before he paused for a moment, obviously thinking about something. (The younger boy had to resist the temptation of saying something rude.)_

_Finally releasing his brother, the eighteen years old smirked, seemingly proud of what occurred to him._

"If you're shorter, lighter, cuter and less trained than me, then I'll simply have to train you, until you aren't short, light and cute anymore."

_For a moment Hei stared at Shé - the offer of training sounded wonderful, as he really needed an outlet for his frustration, but on the other hand, he'd have to put up with the older boy._

And who said anything about me being cute?

_After thinking for a moment, the younger one pouted, before agreeing to his brother's suggestion._

_Shé grinned, obviously happy that he could spend time with his younger brother, and enthusiastically jumped to his feet, pulling the younger boy with him._

"Awesome! I'm here every night, but every other day I'm being trained by my teacher, so you can't come then. Oh! Next time you can take our mei mei with you! Alright, let's get started! The first thing we're gonna do…"

_For a moment Hei simply stared at his newfound brother, who was behaving like a squirrel on crack (Lady Hui Qin had used that expression before and Hei wasn't really sure what 'crack' was, but it sounded appropriate for Shé's behaviour…)._

What on earth did I get myself into now?

* * *

_When he had been __younger, Shé had always wondered why his mother seemed to dislike his father – cruel comments that only the two of them understood had been an almost daily occurrence since he was ten years old and only many months later would he connect the abrupt departure of his tutor with the hostility that was always between his parents._

_He had been sad to see the female teacher leave, since her motherly nature had endeared her to him._

_Shé had practically been brought up by nannies all his life, since his mother was always involved in parties and events, as the wife of a politically interested, very rich and powerful man, so that woman's behaviour had at once made him like her._

_It had hurt when she had left, since she hadn't even said goodbye to him – that had cut deeply and when he overheard two servants talking about how she had left because she was pregnant, he had wished the child in her womb all the bad luck in the world, for stealing away the kind woman._

_After some time though, after he had been sent to a boarding school (his mother was against any new tutors for some reason), he had thought about the child and had found himself curious._

What will it look like? What will it be like? Is it a boy or a girl?

_Many questions came to his mind until another one made him pause and think._

What would it be like to have a younger sibling?

_After thinking it, that thought wouldn't leave him alone and so he asked another boy he had grown to know and like and who was exceptionally talented with computers, to find information about his tutor, wondering if she would let him visit her and her child._

_When his friend had come to him, a serious look on his face and many papers (birth certificates, DNA-tests,…) in his arms, he had the feeling that what he would discover would change him irreparably._

_And he was right – it had changed him beyond of what he would have thought, but it wasn't a bad change._

_He started to keep tabs on the small family, (because of that he knew that another child had been born) and in his holidays he would get someone to take him near their house and watch them play and run around. Sometimes he felt like a stalker, but he consoled himself with the thought that, as an older brother, he had every right to keep his eyes on his siblings to make sure they wouldn't get into trouble._

_Years later, when he finally met __the children in person, he could only thank the gods for allowing him to find out about the two before he had been tainted with prejudices about illegitimate children and he thanked them for letting him have a good friend, who was more mature than even many adults and who had influenced him think about the situation, telling him that 'blood is thicker than water' and the mistakes of parents shouldn't be held against their children._

_With these thoughts in mind and having known about his siblings for years, he had been overjoyed to discover that his father had taken them in, giving his oldest son, who had just graduated from boarding school, the opportunity to meet his brother and his sister._

_Yes, he had been overjoyed, until he had found out just how they had been treated since they had arrived and he did his best to curb any and all negative behaviour against them, while keeping himself hidden._

_Ruefully the teenager had thought that he was too accustomed to simply watching the two of them, that he simply didn't have the courage to talk to them._

_That changed when, a few days later, his younger brother stumbled across him and Shé couldn't help but __do the things he had always wanted to do – tackle the younger boy and tease him._

_Even when he had just been watching, he had noticed that his dì di had been quite serious and __after living in the mansion for some time, it had only worsened, since the boy _

_had rarely had __a reason to smile, which Shé had always wanted to make the boy do – that, or make him lose his temper, whichever came first._

_He hadn't been able to hide his enthusiasm when he finally met his brother personally, which, when he thought about it later, must have left quite an impression on the younger one – whether that impression was positive or negative, could be speculated about._

_After his little brother had agreed to the training sessions and had left, Shé had sat down on the floor and simply basked in the knowledge that he could now be an older brother in blood and in heart for his siblings, since he was sure that he would meet his little sister soon too._

_He was right of course – a few days later, the blue eyed boy took his sister along and the oldest one couldn't have been happier._

_Well._

_That was a lie._

_For some reason, the girl was rather distant with him and while he didn't mind having to earn her affection, he was painfully reminded of the distance between him and his parents and because of that, he busied himself with teaching his dì di._

_While on the surface he interacted with his sister as much as with his brother, this interaction was rather shallow compared with how he usually interacted with people._

Oh, well. As soon as we know each other better I'm sure the distance will decrease.

_He mused._

After all, it's not as though we don't have all the time we need to become close.

* * *

_With a grunt, a ten-year-old Hei landed on the floor. Panting he looked up at his older brother, glaring annoyed at the sweating teenager – it was frustrating that, no matter much he trained, he was unable to throw the older one onto the mat._

_In the background he heard clapping and he knew that Xîng was grinning as she watched her gê ge and her dà gê spar._

_It had been a long time since he and his sister had been taken from their mother and had met their older half-brother and after all this time, that yearning that they felt for the woman who had raised them, had lessened._

_This could be accredited to Shé, who, with his energetic antics and easy smiles, had made them feel at home at the mansion, where they were unwanted and besides their teacher Lady Hui Qin, he was the only one whom they really trusted._

_Training every other day had become a habit for Hei and, though she never joined in, Xîng sometimes came to watch – something that the boy was grateful for, as it curbed her habit of falling asleep in dark, empty rooms._

_It was also due to their older brother that the siblings were left alone now, not subjected to pranks or unnecessary punishments and both of them were grateful._

_Neither of them had ever had a father, or even a male role model, but after meeting his older brother, Hei wished he had found out about Shé sooner._

_The hand that was practically shoved into his face distracted him from his thoughts and the boy frowned up at the older one – the oldest of the siblings had been strangely quiet and moody for the past few days and it was slowly starting to irritate the younger boy._

_Xîng wasn't really bothered by anything anymore and sometimes it chilled her blue eyed brother to the core, when he felt the same coldness inside her that he had felt in his father many years ago._

_Taking the proffered hand, he was soon standing on his own feet again, but he didn't release the limb he had grasped. Instead he looked at the older one for some time and simply decided to question his brother frankly about what was bothering him._

"You've been in a bad mood for days and it's starting to be a pain in the ass. What's all that fuss about?"

_Maybe Hei could have worded it a little bit more polite, but ever since they had been taken from their mother, he had learned a lot of swear words and the boy felt comfortable enough in the older one's presence to swear and be rude – something that could, ironically, be considered as a compliment._

_Shé stared, first at his brother, then at his sister (who was watching curiously), before he release his younger brother's hand, sighed resignedly and let himself fall onto the padded floor, eagle-spread and obviously depressed._

"You know that my twentieth birthday is next week, don't you?"_ He didn't need to see his siblings to know that they were nodding._

"Well, good, because next week, on my birthday, I'm going to get married – don't worry, you're invited,"

_The teenager's voice was dry and a little bitter and it was obvious to the other two, what the one sitting on the floor was thinking about being married – nonetheless they were surprised and a little hurt that the older one hadn't bothered to say anything to them._

_Shé seemingly noticed their silent hurt, as he was quick to explain himself._

"I didn't tell you anything about it because I only heard about it last week from father – believe me, had I known earlier, I would have packed my things and had run away faster than you can say 'pompous bastard'."

_The anger that the oldest one felt was palatable before, but – as always when in one of his moods – his mood simply shifted to something else – in this case sadness and melancholy._

"I don't even know her name, or face, or how old she is."

_At the end of the sentence his voice cracked and Hei felt sympathy for his brother-turned-trainer – he then decided to jump onto his older brother's stomach, driving the air out of the older one's lungs._

_One reason why he did that was because it distracted his brother – the other one was that it was simply satisfying to have caught the older one off guard, which was something that didn't happen nearly as often as the blue eyed boy liked._

_Shé coughed, trying to get air back into his lungs, glaring at the younger one, before he was distracted by Xîng, who had silently walked up to them. To both of the boys' surprise, she sat on her older brother's stomach, with Hei sitting in front of her on the chest._

"Since there's no way for you to get out of it, why don't you try to make the best out of it and at least try to get to know her dà gê?"

_Her voice cut through the silence and for a moment her siblings shared a startled look – it was rare for the girl to talk __that freely anymore and it was startling to hear her talk to the oldest one of them, since, for some reason, she always avoided talking to him._

_(Hei had the suspicion that she had a crush on the older boy which was a little disturbing, but not impossible, since she had never seen Shé before arriving at the mansion.)_

_Deciding to take pity on everyone and trying to lighten the mood, the blue eyed boy said the first thing that came to his mind._

"And if you don't like her, you can simply poison 'father' – which would make you to the new clan head and then you can divorce her."

_The silence that followed that statement was deafening, before it was broken by slow chuckles that worked their way up to full blown laughter._

_Unfortunately, due to his siblings sitting on him, Shé couldn't get enough air, his face was turning blue and his laughter was starting to sound rather choked._

_This time Hei and Xîng shared a look and simultaneously rolled off the oldest one, who curled up on his side, gasping for breath while still laughing._

_It took some time for him to calm down again, but when he finally managed to stop laughing he sent his siblings an affectionate look._

"You know what? You're right – maybe this won't be too bad."

* * *

_The wedding was a large, official affair and both Hei and Xîng were bored to tears by the time it was over. Both of them knew that they wouldn't be able to see their older brother for some time, since he was going to be busy with his wife, but at least he was relatively content – at least he had looked happy when he had seen that the woman he was going to marry was quite beautiful._

_The sibling__s already missed the goofy, childish man._

_In the years they had been at the mansion, Shé had been Hei's confidant and Xîng had started to get over her crush and had started to talk to him too, so both of them couldn't help but be jealous that their brother wouldn't be able to spend time with them anymore._

_It was also doubtful that their new sister-in-law would like them, since she had probably heard about the clan-head's illegitimate children before._

_The blue eyed boy suppressed a sigh as he walked to the training room the three siblings frequented every second night – it looked like he would have to train by himself._

_At least that was what he thought, but when he opened the door, the lights were on and three figures were already in the room – his brother, sister and sister-in-law were obviously waiting for him there._

_For a moment Hei just stared surprised, before he ran towards the group, slamming the door behind him._

"What are you doing here? Shouldn't you be somewhere else starting on giving the old man grandchildren?"

_The woman – he thought that her name was Mei Ling – spluttered embarrassed, while Xîng just rolled her eyes and Shé glared at him (though the effect was lost, since he was also blushing)._

Thank you for arriving that timely. We are here, because both Mei Ling and I think that it's too early for us to be in a real relationship and we should start to get to know each other better first!"

_For being the oldest one in the room, the young man sounded immature as he replied sarcastically while giving his younger brother a dirty look._

_Hei rolled his eyes, trying to hide his glee, and did his best to shoot the older one an unimpressed look._

"So you are going to get to know each other – should you really be doing this here in a training room? If you're only going to talk, you are going to distract me from training."

_Obviously annoyed, Shé tackled the boy, catapulting both of them onto the ground, while using the younger a cushion to break his fall._

_The blue eyed male gasped for air and pressed his hands against the older one's chest, trying to get the man off of him._

"Can't… breathe… get… off… of… me…!"

_In the background he heard Xîng and Mai Ling talking, but he was too busy with trying to keep himself from suffocating to really listen what the two of them were saying._

_Finally his older brother heaved himself off of the boy, and Hei just lay there, trying to get enough air back into his lungs._

_Blinking to dislodge the stars in front of his eyes, the boy turned his head to look at the newly wed man._

_Shé looked back at him, loosing the goofy, childish attitude and smiling softly at his brother._

"I told Mei that the best way to get to know another person is to share the things you like to do with them and the thing I like best is spending time with my cute little brother and sister."

_At the end of his statement, the oldest sibling grinned again and Hei couldn't help but smile back, a warm feeling in his chest making him feel content._

_In the background he heard his two sisters laugh (obviously Xîng was sharing all of the mishaps the two brothers had gotten into over the years) and Hei felt that things were getting better. His brother was happy, Xîng was losing her apathy and Mei Ling sounded like she would fit well into the little family they had built._

Maybe it's not as bad as I thought it would be…

* * *

_The first time Mei Ling had heard that she would marry into the Wû family, she had been sceptical._

_She would never have dared to openly question her parent's decision, but in her own way she had asked whether they were sure they wanted her to become the oldest son's wife or not – after all, it wasn't a secret that the current clan-head didn't think much of fidelity._

_She had accepted the answer that, even with the scandal, the family was powerful and it would be beneficial to her clan were she to marry the heir._

_Despite these assurances the young woman had been uneasy about her husband-to-be and because of that she had started to inquire about him whenever she met someone who knew him._

_What she had learned was both reassuring and unsettling._

_Apparently he was good-looking and intelligent – and both of these features were attractive to her, but what had bothered her had been the fact that everyone she had asked about him told her, that the only family members he was really close to were his siblings – the illegitimate children of his father._

_Mei __had found out that he spent most of his time with them and whenever someone was rude to them, they would have to answer to Wû Shé._

_That was where she __had been conflicted – on one hand she hadn't been able to help it, but she had been worried that it would only be a marriage on paper as he spent his time with his siblings._

_On the other hand she had understood just why he seemed that taken with his brother and sister._

_She, too, was an only child and had often yearned for a brother or a sister to talk and play with when she was younger and, had she found out about any siblings – illegitimate or not – she would have been ecstatic about them._

_Now, after having been married to Shé for three months, she could only smile at the thoughts she had had. She had been right on both accounts of her fears, but what she hadn't counted on was, that she was as taken with the children as her husband was._

_The talk they had had just after the wedding was one she was pleased about, as he had told her that he wanted to get to know her and he wanted her to get to know him – both things she, too desperately wanted, as she had no desire to end up in a loveless and distant marriage._

_What he had told her after that had surprised her, but it had roused her curiosity, which, after knowing him for some time, was probably what he had wanted._

_He had told her frankly that his siblings were very important to him and he wanted her to get to know them and while he wouldn't cut back on the time he spent with them –because they needed him and he needed them – she was more than welcome to join them._

_She had agreed hesitantly and, after changing out of their formal attire, they had walked to the training room Shé had told her he always met them in._

_The first one she had met had been the one __called Xîng and her first impression had been that the girl disliked her, but after talking to the her, the child had warmed up to her quickly after realising that she wouldn't steal away her older brother._

_As they had waited for the last of the siblings, she had mustered the girl curiously and found her to be a pleasing mixture of pretty and cute that would one day make her into a beautiful woman, with her exotic light blue eyes,__ pale complexion and chestnut hair._

_To her own surprise Mei Ling found that she liked the girl and after talking to her for some time, she could see what her husband had meant when he had told her about his siblings needing him._

_Whenever she looked into Xîng's eyes, she could see something missing, something essential and something that would make her a complete person, because, while she smiled and laughed good-naturedly, the woman could see that nothing ever reached her eyes._

_They didn't look dead or cold, but somehow, when she looked into these sky blue eyes, she felt that this girl had long since lost the ability to care for others – it chilled her and she knew that she would do her best to get the girl to care again._

_After finishing the thought, she was ripped from brooding anymore, when the door opened and a small boy entered. He looked genuinely surprised to see them, which gave her time to muster him._

_There was no doubt in her mind that he was a beautiful child – dark hair black enough to look almost blue, pale skin and a pair of midnight blue eyes framed by thick dark lashes set in a passive face._

_His looks were different from his sister's, who still had to grow into her looks, but what startled her was that he seemed to be the polar opposite of his sister._

_Where his sister's face was expressive and her eyes closed, it was different with the one her husband had told her was called Míng Yè – his face was completely inexpressive, but his eyes were alive in a way that told everyone what he thought and felt._

_When he towards them after slamming the door closed and after he arrived and started to bicker with his brother, making several embarrassing comments, when the two of them started to wrestle and she saw the love in her husband's eyes, she knew that she would grow to love these children as though they were her own siblings._

_That feeling grew even more, when Xing started to tell her about the many arguments the brothers had gotten into over the years, their causes and the mishaps that had happened afterwards, when the loser of the argument tried to get revenge._

_Watching the three siblings and their closeness, she felt that she could grow to love them, just as she felt that Shé would make a wonderful father._

* * *

_T__hirteen years old Hei gently put his ear to the large stomach of his sister-in-law, curiously listening for the niece or nephew he would get soon._

_Mei Ling was in the last month of her pregnancy and would soon give birth to the child that would make an aunt out of Xîng, an uncle out of Hei and a father out of Shé, who had turned out to be a frantic, overprotective husband/father-to-be, who almost tripped over his feet in his haste to make his wife rest or make her comfortable._

_He would probably be annoyed with them, were they to tell him about the bets they placed ranging from when he would finally do it and trip over own limbs, to whether he would live to see the child be born or die of a heart attack first (there was also a bet that he would exhaust himself that much, that he was the one who had to go to the hospital instead of his wife)._

_After some time the boy raised his head again, his eyes glowing with glee and a wide smile on his face as he happily told Mei Ling that he had felt something._

_The woman smiled back softly, one of her hands unconsciously rubbing her stomach – she was content and happy that both Xîng and her brother had been genuinely happy for her and her husband when they had told them about the baby._

_Both Shé and Mei had feared that the children would be jealous, but their reactions had put them completely at ease as their younger sister has smiled at them and told them to pick a good name and their younger brother had immediately wanted to know what gender it was going to be, pouting slightly when he was told that there was no way to know that yet._

_Hei couldn't help but be happy about getting a niece or nephew (the parents-to-be still refused to tell him if it was a girl or a boy, no matter what he did), since it would __liven things up a little._

_He loved his siblings, he really did, but sometimes he had the feeling __that he knew them so well that it was getting boring to be around them, since they often behaved incredibly predictable._

_Or maybe that was just puberty kicking in and his hormones were starting to get active – privately the boy had nothing against growing a little, since he was still rather short in statue – though he'd never, ever admit that to anyone._

_Just in that moment Shé entered the room with Xîng in tow, both carrying gifts and gift-baskets._

_When she saw what the two of them were holding Mei rolled her eyes good-naturedly as her husband and his sister both groaned when they were finally able to put the heavy packages down._

"You know, you could have helped a little dì di! Honestly letting us do all the work and making yourself comfortable in here!"

_His older brother's protest was entertaining to the teenager, who smirked in response and shot back a comment that made Shé wince._

"What? Are you not strong enough to do it on your own, gê ge?"

_He smirked when he noticed that his older brother seemed to be sulking as the soon-to-be father slowly made his way into a corner of the room, squatting down and grumbling under his breath._

"Ungrateful child… dare he mock me… I only lost… wasn't feeling well… never happening again… fluke…"

_The reason that the oldest of the siblings was that moody was because Hei had beaten him in a spar, which was a huge blow to the older one's pride._

_When he had started to train his younger brother, Shé never would have thought that he would one day be beaten by said boy, but it was true._

_The blue eyed boy had proven to have an almost insane amount of talent regarding martial arts – it took some time for him to understand the basics, but after he did, he progressed at an almost inhuman rate, much to the older man's chagrin._

_Despite what Shé thought, though, it was an extremely useful talent to have, and it would save Hei's life many, many times in the future._

* * *

"What are you doing gê ge?"

_For a moment Hei was thrown back to the time when Xîng had caught him when he had been about to go stargazing and had convinced him to take her with him._

_Smiling slightly, he looked up at his sister as he was sitting on the ground in a remote part of the large garden that surrounded the mansion._

"I'm just thinking."

_The girl tilted her head a little and the sun that was shining that day made her eyes sparkle, before she lowered her head and sat down beside him._

_It was probably because he had been thinking about their mother, but suddenly Hei was struck with an affectionate and protective feeling._

_He loved Shé and Mei Ling, just as he would love his niece and nephew that was due any day, but as they were sitting together, like in old times, the boy was struck with the feeling that he would do anything for that girl._

_The two of them had been together ever since Xîng had been born and they had rarely been apart – almost never voluntarily – and the bond they had couldn't be compared to any connection they had with other people._

_Yes, Hei would do anything to stay with his sister and he would protect her from anyone who tried to hurt her._

_A poke to his side ripped him from his thoughts and he turned to look at the one he had been thinking about._

"You look too serious gê ge! Stop thinking if it makes you sad."

_Two pairs of blue eyes met and both smiled at the other, before Xîng stood and grabbed his hand__, pulling him to his feet._

"Shé and Mei sent me to look for you – they want to tell us something."

_She continued to pull on his hand, slowly getting him to follow her until they were walking side by side and even then she didn't relinquish his hand, so that they walked to the house hand in hand, the sun warming them and letting them feel content._

* * *

_When they arrived at the room in which their siblings wanted to talk to them, they were met with serious and worried faces._

_Their older brother told them to sit down and they obeyed uneasily, both of them wondering what had happened._

"You know that we haven't let you into the garden at night, right?"

_Mei Ling's words were careful and it was that cautious tone in her voice that prevented the two younger ones from protesting (again) against the newly imposed house-arrest._

_Noticing that there would be no protest, Shé was talking now, seemingly uneasy about how to continue._

"Despite what you think, there was a reason for this – a good one."

_The man took a piece of paper out of his pocket and Hei could see that it was a picture of a night-sky._

"The reason we didn't let you out, was to keep this a secret from you."

_Shé put the photograph on the table and both siblings leaned closer to get a better look at it. At first Hei really didn't know what his older brother meant, but after some time he realised what was wrong._

"The sky isn't blue and the stars are all wrong!"

_Mei Ling nodded grimly at her brother-in-law's observation. The sky was still blue, but it now held a violet tint, while the stars were completely different – now the married couple had to tell the children why._

"You are right. The sky changed, but it isn't the only thing that did."

_The pregnant woman looked at her husband, worry in her eyes as she wasn't sure how to continue._

"What do you mean? What else is different?"

_Hei's demanding voice cut through the uncomfortable silence – the boy was angry that something as big as this had been kept from him. He loved the stars and __to have been kept unaware of the change they had gone under was something akin to betrayal._

"Another thing that changed is the appearance of something they call 'Hell's Gate' in Japan and the 'Heaven's Gate' in South America. Nobody knows what these things really are, just that they suddenly appeared and killed hundreds and thousands of humans."

_The silence in the room was overwhelming as everyone tried to take what had been said in – even Shé and Mei Ling, who had known about it, were silent. It was one thing to consciously know something, but it was a completely different thing to say it out loud._

"What… what does that mean for us? I mean… it's in Japan and South America, right?"

_Hei's voice was hoarse and it was obvious that it was difficult for him to wrap his mind about what his siblings were telling him._

_The blue eyed boy glanced at his younger sister, a little unsettled by her silence – he was met with uncaring blue eyes and a chill went through his body._

_She had relapsed more and more to the apathy that had once threatened her that much and every time it happened, her older brother felt cold, as if her apathy sucked away his ability to feel too._

_The voice of his older brother interrupted him._

"You are right. As callous as it sounds – if it was only about the Gates, we didn't have a reason to worry, but it's not only that. Father told me about several strange rumours that he heard about and I can't deny that they worry me."

_The face of the oldest of the siblings darkened – something that rarely happened due to his normally sunny disposition._

"There have been rumours about crime rising in all parts of the world and Mei and I are worried, after hearing that there were several break-ins in town.

We talked about it for a long time and, the current situation coupled with the pregnancy, let us come to the conclusion that it would be better for us were we to move somewhere else – somewhere safer."

_Hei was startled when he heard that, but he couldn't deny that it sounded logical – or maybe it was only his glee speaking, as now, after being at the mansion for years, they would finally be able to leave._

"When are we leaving?"

_All of them were startled when they heard Xîng's voice, but it was good to see her taking an interest in something, even if it was only her own safety._

_Hei noticed a strange expression in his brother's eyes, but it vanished before he could be sure of what it was – he suddenly got the disquieting feeling that Shé was hiding something and that that something would turn out to be something the blue eyed boy really, really wouldn't like._

_Contrary to her husband, Mei Ling seemed to be relieved at the girl's easy acceptance and finally a smile crossed her face, making the worry vanish._

"We want to leave as soon as possible, so it would be best if you start to pack your things."

_All of them stood, but Hei paused for a moment, a thought occurring to him._

"Where are we going anyway?"

_His sister-in-law smiled at him, before answering._

"We are going to visit my grandmother. She is a little… peculiar and moved to the country several years ago. She recently wrote me because she wants me to visit and, since her health isn't what it was once, she has a doctor living with her. It's convenient, no matter how you look at it, since there won't be any problems with the pregnancy with a doctor nearby."

_It was more information than the boy had wanted, but he supposed that, if rambling relieved her tension, he would listen to her as much as she wanted._

_Letting her finish talking, he simply nodded and made his way to the small room he could call his own, to gather his things._

_He wanted to leave as soon as possible._

* * *

_All of them were silent, as they drove through the city – it was an uneasy silence, as they were quite nervous. Their anxiety stemmed from the empty streets that greeted them as soon as they had left the large premises of the Wû family._

_It was unnatural that nobody was outside at this time of the day and none of them wanted to find out just why it was that way._

_Years later, Hei would always wonder what he could have done to change the happenings of that day – he would always feel as if there had been something he could have influenced, though in reality, no action of his could have prevented the fate that would befall the small family he cared about._

_It happened suddenly, without warning and none of the passengers in the car could react before said vehicle was turned upside down and it landed on its hood._

_Hei heard his brother's curses and Mei's scream, as she was violently thrown through the car and he wondered dimly, why Xîng was that quiet and he also wondered why his head was hurting that much, before he realised that he must have hit it somewhere and that the limp weight on his arm was his sister._

_Barely conscious, he couldn't react as the front door of the car was ripped off and his brother was jerked out of it, seemingly by nothing._

_The boy turned his head and looked out of the window to see a man standing there, his eyes were glowing a bright crimson, while his body was surrounded by a beautiful blue-white glow._

An angel…?

_The thought came to him unbidden, long forgotten teachings about christian Religion coming to his mind, before his eyes focussed for a moment, concentrating on the red glow in the man's eyes and the malicious smirk on his face._

No… a demon…

_It was the last though his mind produced before everything in front of his eyes darkened, the world slowly growing black until the screams and sobs of his sister-in-law and his brother faded to nothing._

_The last thing he physically registered was the warm weight lying on the right side of his body and the relief he felt, that his sister was with him._

* * *

_When he opened his eyes again, he was alone and it was night. He was still lying in the car, though someone had cut his seatbelt, so he was spread out on the hood, a bandage wrapped around his head._

_Wincing at the pain he felt, he turned his head, looking out of the vehicle, wondering where on earth his siblings were._

_When he couldn't see anybody, he slowly rolled onto his stomach, before he brought his arms underneath himself, heaving his body into a position, where he was able to crawl out of the car on all fours._

_When he was finally on the street, he raise his head carefully, not wanting to aggravate his injury, before he forgot all about the various aches in his body, his mouth falling open in shock, eyes widening in disbelief of what he was seeing._

_The street looked like a bomb had gone off in it – windows had shattered, asphalt covering the ground was torn open, houses were damaged. It was destruction in its purest form._

_It was then, that he noticed the bodies lying around and the question of why the streets had been deserted was answered._

_Quickly, Hei looked away, forcing his lunch to stay where it was – it was a truly horrifying sight, as corpses were gathered in the houses, now visible because of the damaged windows and walls._

_Not wanting to lose the battle with sickness, the blue eyed boy cautiously looked around, avoiding the corpses and looking for any sign of his family._

_Finally realising that there was no way he would be able to find anyone, he slowly stood up, using the upturned car as support, and when his legs were relatively steady, he slowly walked forward, looking around while trying to keep himself from seeing any of the more horrifying sights._

_To say the least, it wasn't working very well and the further the boy walked, the more he was able to smell a disgusting, decaying scent that was hovering in the air – it took Hei some time to realise that what he was smelling were the bodies and that was when he finally lost the battle with his lunch, quickly running to the side of the road, before throwing up his lunch, breakfast and dinner of the night before – at least it felt like it._

_A voice distracted him and a soothing hand started to rub circles on his back – it took the boy some time to recognise his younger sister, but when he did, he could have wept with happiness and glee or at least he could have, until he noticed that the young girl had a strange expression on his face and seemed to be completely unbothered by the smell and the sight around her._

_Finally having emptied his stomach of its contents, Hei turned around, wiping his mouth on his sleeve, silently questioning Xîng with his eyes._

_She smiled gently, as she always did, and took his hand, pulling him along with her._

_For a moment the boy was reminded of the same day, though it now seemed to be ages ago, when she had pulled him out of the garden, to the room where his older siblings had told them they were going to move._

_Holding on to the memory, blocking out the carnage and destruction around them, Hei simply concentrated on his sister's back, wondering where she was taking him and what had happened._

_He inwardly asked the same question, when they finally arrived at a small house, relatively unscathed of the damage._

_The siblings entered and the thirteen-year-old was greeted with a weeping Shé, who was cradling a small, unmoving bundle to his chest, Mei Ling lying in front of him, equally unmoving and pale, as an old man stood in a corner, simply watching the couple._

_Xîng finally let go of his hand and moved to sit by their sister-in-law, Shé ignoring everyone, simply staring at the small bundle, tears running from his eyes._

_Hei felt a darkly foreboding feeling, as he noticed how flat Mei's body was beneath the blanket covering her and he had a horrible thought of what could be the bundle in his brothers arms._

_He was right, as he found out several minutes later, as the old man pulled him to the side, pity in his eyes._

"It was stillborn. I've never seen anything like it, since it's perfectly healthy and developed – it's almost as if whatever destroyed this part of the town and killed all those people also killed this child and simply stopped it from breathing."

_The boy felt sick again, as the old man talked, uncaring that the only audience for his gruesome observations was a thirteen years old child._

_As he heard this theory, Hei thought of car-doors being ripped out of their angles, by seemingly nothing, he thought of a malicious smile on a cold face, as his brother hovered in the air, again held by nothing and he thought of sobs and screams while the world faded to black – but he didn't say anything._

_He was sure that, were he to tell the old man what he had seen, said man would throw him out as fast as humanly possible and there was no way he was going to leave his family alone while they needed him – _Though_, he thought while glancing at his younger sister, _I'm not sure if Shé and Mei aren't the only ones needing me…

* * *

_Several days later, they were still with the old man and none of the older ones were in a hurry to leave._

_It was driving Hei crazy to the point where he wished that they had never left the mansion._

_The stench, the people that had come to clean up, the reporters that wanted to talk to them, Mei's empty eyes, as she refused to eat and sleep, Shé's silence and the hatred in his eyes as he looked at Xîng and, most of all, his sister's silence and the fact that the youngest one of them seemed completely unbothered by the situation._

_The blue eyed boy couldn't help but feel cold._

_The icy feeling had invaded him while he had fallen unconscious and it had only grown worse since then – the teen couldn't help but feel as if he would never feel warmth again._

_When he went out at night and looked at the sky, he felt his eyes sting and it took all he had to suppress the tears that tried to well up in his eyes – he didn't even have the stars to soothe him anymore._

_Even the star that had been beside him for almost his whole life seemed to have gone out, as the light he had always admired in his sisters eyes had died, leaving only a being lost in apathy, that couldn't care for others._

_Xîng had lost the fight she had fought since they had left their mother years ago and it was heartbreaking for everyone who had known her before they had moved to the mansion._

_It was even more heartbreaking to realise that he was the only one left who knew her like that, as he doubted that they would ever see their mother again._

_That didn't explain the sudden hostility his brother suddenly showed to the youngest one and again Hei asked himself what had happened after he had fallen unconscious that day._

_He hadn't dared to ask anyone, since Mei's mental health was failing, Shé was looking for a reason to lose his temper and the boy was afraid to disturb his sister, as she looked out of one of the windows, watching as the mountains of corpses were carted away by some kind of military personnel._

_The teenager would never admit it out loud, but he was scared for both his family and himself, because he had the feeling that, when his brother finally lost his temper, the whole situation would get even worse than it already was – the question was now, for whom it would get worse though Hei already had a feeling about that._

_The only thing he could do for now, was hope that he was wrong._

* * *

_After another few days, Shé decided to go back to the mansion to look how things were going there._

_When he came back half a day later, a stormy expression on his face, everyone knew that the man had finally reached his breaking point and Hei's premonition was going to come true._

_The moment the oldest of the siblings came back, the old man excused himself, claiming to have something to do, while Mei simply stared at Shé for a moment, which seemed to incense her husband even more._

_Xîng was completely oblivious, but when her oldest brother made a beeline for her, she started to back away when she saw the horrible malice in his eyes._

_Startled that the older one would do something like that, Hei got between the two of them and demanded an explanation._

_What he got was an angry look from eyes that were watery, as if holding back tears._

_It was a look the boy had never seen before, least of all on the face of his usually happy-go-luck brother, but then again, it wasn't as if the situation they were in wasn't unique enough to change someone – and the loss of his first child was definitely something that had changed Shé, Mei Ling and even Hei, who hadn't even been allowed to look at the child before it was taken away by the people who disposed of the corpses, claiming it 'unsanitary' to hold a dead body close._

_Xîng had been completely unfazed and when her blue eyed brother had asked why she wasn't grieving, she had simply answered that the death of someone wasn't something that had anything to do with her._

_That had been the moment her brother had known that something in his little sister had inexplicably changed and there was nothing that could change her back._

_When Shé finally started to talk, it was in a quiet and quivering voice, that left no room for interruptions, though, while listening, Hei's breath left him and he was unable to move or speak anyway as disbelief and despair paralysed him._

"You want to know what's going on? I'll tell you what's going on! The man that attacked us, that attacked the whole town, that did this to Mei Ling, went to the mansion and burned it down, with all of its inhabitants still in it."

_The oldest of the siblings turned his angry gaze to__ his younger sister, disgust and grief entering his eyes._

_In years to come Hei would understand that his brother had felt grief for being unable to see his sister as anything other than a Contractor anymore and that the disgust was both directed at himself and the being in front of him._

"And that girl you are protecting, that creature, is the same as that monster that destroyed the town and our home! Didn't you wonder why everyone but us was dead? Haven't you asked yourself just why he let us live? Well, the answer is, that he let us go because she did something to him – she glowed blue, while her eyes glowed red, just like him and he let us live because he could see that she is as much of a monster as him!"

_Shé reached out his hand to jerk his younger brother away from the girl he now couldn't accept as a relative, the expression in his eyes turning crazed, when his hand was suddenly knocked away._

_The older one seemed taken aback, as he took in the fury on Hei's face – this time it was the teen's turn to talk and where Shé's voice had quivered, the younger one's was steady and dangerously quiet._

"Xîng is neither a creature, nor a monster – she is both your and my sister and I won't let you call her anything else, no matter what she can or can't do."

_Seeing that his brother tried to protest, to interrupt,__ the blue eyed boy held up a hand – he felt tired and sad and he knew that there was no way that the little family they had formed would be able to withstand this._

_Taking a deep breath, Hei continued to talk – not because he thought that he could change his brother's mind, but because he felt that he had to protect and defend Xîng, even if it cost him Shé's loyalty and even love._

"From what I could piece together, the man that attacked us is responsible for Mei's miscarriage and he is the one to hold accountable for the many deaths, but it's _his_ fault and you can't blame Xîng for it, because without her we wouldn't even be alive."

_The unending hurt in his older brother's eyes made the teen flinch, but soon he regained his composure and stared back calmly._

_Shé's voice cracked when he finally talked._

"You would choose _her_, someone who is like the monster who killed hundreds, who killed our baby, who destroyed everything we've ever had, over me and Mei?"

_Hei felt a stab of pain as he realised the result of this quarrel – he turned his head to look at his sister-in-law with pained eyes, feeling grief cloud his senses as he saw that she had wrapped her arms around herself, tears staining her cheeks, her eyes meeting his, coherent for the first time in days._

_Swallowing thickly, he turned back towards Shé, who was still watching him with disbelief written in his face._

_For a moment the boy was reminded of the day he and Xîng had sat in the garden, the sun shining down on them and the feeling of unending devotion he had felt towards the girl he called sister._

_Opening his eyes, unaware that he had even closed them, he looked at his brother before answering._

"Yes."

_Just one simple word was all it took to make Shé sink to his knees and Hei could feel his sister's small hand touch his back gently, her warmth flowing inside him and for a moment the boy wondered how it was possible for someone that cold to have such warm hands._

_What happened next completely caught him off guard. In a flash the oldest sibling was on his feet again, a harsh, betrayed look on his face._

"Get out!"

_Dumbfounded the blue eyed teen stared at the older one, not sure if he had correctly heard what had been said._

"What?"

_His voice was quiet, the dangerous tone having vanished as though it had never existed in the first place._

_The answer he got was firm and the loathing in the voice speaking was something completely unexpected for the boy._

_Hei had expected that he would have to choose between his siblings and he didn't regret his choice, he had even expected them to part ways, but he never would have thought that he and Xîng were simply thrown on the streets!_

"You heard me the first time! If you choose this little monster rather than us, I don't want to see you ever again! _GET OUT!_"

_Seeking help he turned to Mei Ling, but the woman's face held the same expression as her husband's, only hers was worse, because the grief in her eyes made Hei feel guilty and he didn't have anything to feel guilty for._

_Trying to change their minds, he tried to say something, but he was cut off harshly – this time by his sister-in-law._

"GET OUT! You are as much a monster as that man! Monsters, bastards, I wish you would die and your corpses were never found! GET OUT! GET…!"

_The woman collapsed into tears, sobs shaking her still weakened body. Enraged Shé __slammed his fist into his brother's face and Hei stumbled back into his sister._

_She barely managed to hold him up and both of them stared at their older sibling for a moment, the blue eyed teen's cheek was hurting and when he saw the expression in his brother's eyes, he was scared that he would do something worse than simply hit him._

_Taking his sister's hand, Hei quickly ran out of the house, his sister-in-law's shrieks following them, as she had started to scream again._

_Feeling despair rise up in his chest, his hand tightened his hold on the only one he trusted anymore._

_It didn't matter to him that Xîng apparently had some power, or that she could ruthlessly attack a man – he didn't even care that she was apathetic towards him._

_He only wondered how he would be able to take care of her now and he knew in his heart that he would never be able to forgive those who had called themselves his 'family', only to betray him and Xîng both._

* * *

I hope you enjoyed it, though Ihave the feeling that it isn't exactly the best chapter I've ever written...

On a more positive note, it's the end of the flashback-part and in the next chapter we'll be back in the present!

Again, I'm really, really sorry for the long wait, though the next chapter will take some time too, since I'm going to be on holiday next week.

Thanks for reading! I did my best with Grammar and such, but if you find a mistake, please tell me and I'll fix it!

Yours,

TTF


	6. Chapter 6

SoB – New Chapter

A/N: Sorry again about the late update, but I was on a roll writing this and it never seemed to have a part where I could cut it off, so I wrote and wrote and this is the result…

I probably put in way too much comedy and comic-relief, but I couldn't help myself after writing about Hei's depressing past – I hope you're not too disappointed.

Anyway, I hope you'll enjoy it anyway and if you find any mistakes, please tell me and I'll fix them.

* * *

After Hei had finished talking, silence swept over the room, as November 11 was mustering him intently.

The blonde man had listened with rapture to the story and the assassin still savoured the look of astonishment that had crossed the older one's face when the Brit had heard of the Contractor he had met as a child.

But now it was silent and Hei was curious about how Jack was going to react, as he looked back at the other man. He was surprised when the blonde's features hardened and he was asked a barrage of questions.

"What happened afterwards? Where is your sister? Do you know why that guy glowed? And…"

November looked at the dark haired man harshly.

"… Why did you tell me everything in such detail? I don't think that you dredged up painful details just to satisfy my curiosity when you simply could have told me she was your sister-in-law and she and her husband abandoned you when you needed them. So why did you tell me all this?"

Hei didn't know why, but somehow he was annoyed by the lack of emotional reaction the Brit showed and that annoyed him even more.

Deciding to answer the older one's questions, he slowly started to talk.

"Afterwards we wandered around and some time later we were taken in by a kind old woman. Several years later, my sister contracted a fatal disease and died because of it."

The syndicate member had to pause for a second as emotion tightened his throat when he thought about Pai and what had happened in South America. Forcing himself to continue, he cleared his throat.

"I don't know why that guy glowed – in fact, I think it was simply a hallucination caused by my head injury. As for the last question…"

This time it was the assassin's turn to look at the MI6 agent squarely.

"… I want your help."

The blonde blinked for a second, before questioning the younger one again. Hei glowered at November – he was starting to feel like he was being interrogated and it wasn't a nice feeling.

"You want me to help you with what?"

The cold suspicion that coloured the kingfisher blue eyes made the Chinese man cautious – he was going to have to rouse the older one's interest if he wanted his assistance in getting his niece to safety.

Thinking back to the time where the both of them had fought as BK-201 and November 11, he remembered that the Brit had wanted information about the syndicate. Slowly the assassin licked his lips, thinking about how to word his next statement to get the best possible reaction.

"Mei told me that she and Yîng are being followed by an organisation – no, a syndicate."

Hei paused, pretending to have to think about what his sister-in-law had told him, as he watched as November's attention snapped into focus with the younger one's words. The interest in the older man's eyes was obvious to the assassin and it didn't occur to him to ask himself why he was able to read the blonde that easily.

"A… syndicate, you said?"

Inwardly feeling slightly bitter that that sentence had more impact on the MI6 agent than his life story, the dark haired man answered while frowning as if confused.

"Yes, that's what she said and I believe her, though I'm not sure why on earth an organisation would be after Yîng."

Again it was quiet in the room, as both of them wondered what Jack was going to do. Hei noticed that the blonde lowered his eyes to the assassin's neck and had to resist the urge to shift uncomfortably – he disliked the man's thoughtless mustering, but he wasn't sure what he could do against it.

"If they are after the girl, we only need to get her to safety, right?"

Hei nodded, satisfied that the conversation went the way he wanted it to.

"If we only need to get the girl out of trouble, what will happen to Mei Ling?"

The answer to the question and the coldness of it obviously startled the blonde, but the assassin couldn't bring himself to care. He knew that he should keep up his disguise as Li Shengshun, but after seeing Mei again, after having to tell someone about his rather unpleasant childhood and after not even getting a decent reaction from the listener, he was annoyed, confused and hurt, he could feel the beginnings of a headache and he really just wanted this conversation to be over, so he could go back to his flat, cook something to calm his nerves and go to sleep.

"I suppose she will have to continue running from that syndicate, to prevent them from noticing that Yîng isn't with her anymore."

Shrugging slightly, this time it was his turn to be startled when he noticed a flash of understanding and another strange emotion cross the blonde's face.

Again Hei couldn't help but be astonished by how expressive and emotional the MI6 agent was turning out to be – when they had first met, the assassin didn't doubt that the Brit would never have let anything, other than the expressions he wanted to, cross his face, so the loss of that control was surprising.

The good thing was that the blonde didn't suspect anything but animosity against Mei to be the reason for the suddenly portrayed coldness.

"If it's like that, then I don't think you have anything against me talking to her about that syndicate of hers after everything is done, do you?"

Plastering a surprised expression onto his face, Hei answered in a startled voice.

"If I say you can, does that mean you'll help me?"

November sighed deeply, but then shot the younger one a slight smile, the kingfisher blue eyes losing their frigidity as he agreed to Hei's terms.

"You have to tell me what I'll have to do though, since I don't know how you plan on helping Yîng." The older one's expression softened with an unreadable emotion as it was answered by a genuine smile of one Li Shengshun.

Just as the assassin was about to reply, the door to the infirmary was violently thrown open and a loud voice and its owner made a flashy appearance.

"There you are! We were wondering if the bandaging had turned into a make-out session, what with how long you were gone, though-" April smirked as her eyes zeroed in on something **very** interesting "-I can see that you didn't actually manage to get beyond holding hands!"

Her exuberant laughter filled the room with noise, as both men looked down at their hands, startled by her comment.

It was only then that they noticed that November's hand, which had been clamped around Hei's wrist, had loosened and lowered to grasp the assassin's hand during the time the dark haired one had been talking about his past.

Quickly they snatched their hands away, the Chinese man feeling his face grow hot while Jack cleared his throat and abruptly stood from his chair to gather the medical supplies he had used to bandage the younger man's hands.

_Don't think about hands you idiot!_

The small voice that always gave the syndicate member the best advice when he dealt with the MI6 agent screamed at him and Hei completely agreed with it.

Trying to distract himself from the still laughing woman, who was about to collapse from a lack of air – _Good Riddance!_ The Chinese man thought annoyed – he dressed himself into his jacket again. Then he chanced a glance at the older male and saw that the agent was glaring at his team-mate angrily, which mollified him a little – the blonde seemed as mortified as the assassin, so he wasn't alone in his embarrassment.

"Let's go back to the interviewing room."

Ignoring the woman that was **still** laughing like a maniac, November followed the younger one's advice and both started to walk back to the others, Hei not noticing that Jack paused for a moment at the door, looking back at April and his eyes and body glowing for a moment.

The brunette did notice that for some reason a smirk had made its way onto the blonde's face and when the Brit took a pack of cigarettes out of his pocket, the younger Contractor had to turn his face away to hide his own smirk, as he thought about what he knew about the older man's abilities and the dark skinned woman's habits.

When the both of them had their facial expressions under control again, their eyes met Hei couldn't help but shoot November a smile.

_Revenge is a dish best served cold. In this case that's to be taken literally._

Jack smiled back and the rest of the walk was spent in amiable silence.

* * *

While November 11 and the one she knew under the name Li Shengshun walked back to the interviewing room, April slowly managed to calm down as she sat down on one of the beds, taking deep breaths to satisfy her burning lungs.

Still giggling uncontrollably as she thought back to the positively horrified look on her team-mate's face and the dark blush on the Chinese man's, she took out one of the beer cans she always carried with her – she needed the wonderful beverage to calm down and give herself strength.

The can felt a little colder and heavier than usual, but she didn't think much of it as she opened it.

Putting it to her lips, she threw her head back, waiting for the beer to caress her dry throat.

She waited.

And waited.

And waited some more.

But after some time of waiting, a darkly foreboding feeling grabbed her and she opened her eyes that had been closed in anticipation, quickly wrenching the can from her mouth, turning it upside down.

Nothing came out of the container, even as she shook it violently.

Thinking back to the dirty look (after working together for such a long time it couldn't really be called 'glare' anymore) November had given her, she felt horror curse through her.

Giving the can one last shake, she quickly dumped the contents of her bag onto the bed she was sitting on and opened every single one of the thirteen cans she had with her, but with the same result.

The beer in the containers had been frozen.

For a moment her mind shut down as she blankly stared at the cans littering the bed, until she could finally comprehend what had to have happened.

Then she reacted.

* * *

Just before Hei and November were about to enter the interviewing room again, they heard a loud scream that threatened to burst their ear-drums before it faded into nothing. It was April's voice.

"**NOOOOOOOOOOOO****OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO**OOOOOOOOOOOooooooooooooh!!"

Hei opened the door and walked into the room, a slight spring to his step, the Brit behind him following him closely, letting his cigarette fall on the floor. Mei Ling and Yîng looked at the two of them as they walked into the room. The younger Contractor nodded at them and opened his mouth to explain the situation, but he was interrupted by his niece.

"_Uncle Jack__!"_

She jumped up and raced to the blonde, hugging him around the waist and causing everyone in the room to gape at her.

"Wha-?" The MI6 agent was stammering and wondering what the heck was going on.

"_U-uncle… Ja-Jack…?"_ Both Hei and Mei repeated after her, disbelief colouring their voices as they stared at the small girl, while November was still gaping and looking down to the dark haired head.

Catching himself, the blue eyed assassin turned to look at the youngest Contractor in the room.

"_Yîng why are you calling him that?"_

The girl loosened her arms around the Brit's waist and turned to beam at him.

"_Don't worry Uncle Hei, I still like you best! But I know that you don't like me yet, so I didn't want to greet you like this."_

Immediately Hei fell silent when the implications of what his niece told him hit home.

For her to talk like that she had to have seen the future, which meant that he and November would manage to save her and afterwards would visit her – apparently together and often if the greeting she had given the MI6 agent was any indication. And she knew his code-name, which meant that she probably knew about the syndicate, which meant that she was in even more danger was the organisation to find out about her knowledge.

Sighing as he felt a headache pound in his temples, the assassin decided not to dwell on that for now.

"_Let go of him you're making him uncomfortable and don't call me by that name please."_

Yîng pouted but obeyed and walked back to her mother.

Finally sure that he wouldn't be interrupted anymore, he started to explain the plan he had thought up while telling November his life-story.

"_I'm going to get the two of you out of the police station tonight. Afterwards Mei is going to meet Jack in the nearest park, where you are going to have to answer some questions about the syndicate. Yîng is coming with me. You don't have to know more in case you're caught."_

The assassin noticed that his sister-in-law still had questions, but he shook his head slightly, to indicate to her that she should stay quiet.

He then turned to November, who was still looking slightly lost and quietly told him that they should go now.

He turned around, glanced one last time at what was left of what had been his family and gave them a giant, fake smile as he bowed slightly, not allowing the grief he suddenly felt show on his face.

_Pathetic._

Inwardly growling at himself, he turned around and both he and Jack walked out of the room, the blonde waving at the two females in the room, closing the door behind him and following the brunette into the adjacent room, where Misaki-san, Saito and July were waiting.

"What were you doing?"

The section chief asked them curiously as they entered the room and for a moment Hei's mind flashed back to how they had unwittingly been holding hands in the infirmary and with a look at November, he knew that the older Contractor was thinking about that too.

Clearing his throat slightly he decided he would interpret the question as 'What were you doing in the interviewing room?' and told them that he had wanted to say goodbye to the woman and her daughter, before he continued to tell them the cover-story he had thought up for the mother-daughter pair. When he was finished, he waited for their reaction, which was as he had expected. Saito was frowning in disapproval that someone could treat one's wife and child like that and Misaki was also glowering at the thought, but she was more thoughtful, since she seemed to already think about how to catch the murderer and who the Contractor was that they had detected. July didn't react, still staring at them blankly.

Finally turning back to the two Contractors, she smiled at the Chinese man brightly, thanking him for his help and asking if he would like to translate for them in future when they had questions to ask, to which he agreed.

Then she paused and asked another question.

"Why was that girl hugging you Jack?"

The Brit shrugged not knowing the answer and both of them turned to Hei, curiosity written on everyone's faces.

Smiling innocently he explained that it seemed the MI6 agent looked like someone Yîng knew and who, coincidently, also was called Jack, knowing that they had all heard the girl say the Brit's name, even if the pronunciation was off.

Both of them shot him a sceptical look, but after some time Misaki smiled at him again, obviously dismissing her suspicion, but November continued to look at him thoughtfully.

Noticing that the investigators were relatively satisfied, he feigned exhaustion and told them that he was going home if they didn't need him anymore, while shooting November a meaningful look.

The MI6 agent nodded slightly, before turning to Misaki and telling her he was going to drive the younger man home. Both she and Saito looked startled, since they knew that it was rare for Jack to do something like that, but neither protested, though the section chief sent the blonde a look that clearly said: _Don't do anything stupid!_

The agent just smiled at her amiably and then turned to July, who had been quiet throughout the whole conversation.

"You can find April in the infirmary, probably doing something stupid, as always. Bye kiddo!"

He ruffled the Doll's hair and waved at Saito and Misaki, before dragging Hei out of the room, barely giving the younger one the time to call a quick goodbye at the others.

It was time they talked about what they were going to do.

* * *

Slowly April put more pressure on the scalpel she was using to cut away the can that was holding her poor beer hostage.

Her tongue between her teeth, she concentrated as the medical tool went deeper into the metal. Sighing slightly when that step was finished, she slowly started to peel off the barrier that kept her from her beloved addiction grinning when she finally succeeded.

She jumped onto the bed she had been sitting on and started to laugh maniacally, holding the ice in her hands over her head and jumping up and down.

"TAKE THAT NOVEMBER! Muahahahahah-!"

Her evil and triumphant laugh was interrupted by a small, apathetic voice coming from the doorway.

"What are you doing?"

Startled April lost her footing and with a loud CRASH she landed on the floor, her beer slipping from her hands and skidding underneath one of the cabinets in the room.

For a moment was everything silent before the dark skinned woman realised what had happened and immediately afterwards, she crawled to the cabinet, throwing herself onto her stomach and trying to fish out the block of ice.

"Julyyy! How could you startle me like that?"

The Doll sighed slightly as he took in her whining tone and sat onto the chair that had been left in front of one of the beds.

If the curses of the Contractor were anything to go by, he would have to wait a while.

* * *

Sinking deeper into the passenger seat of the car, Hei resisted the urge to sigh deeply as he was alone with the Brit again.

_At least there's no way you can hold hands now._ A darkly amused voice told him dryly.

Telling it to shut up, he concentrated on his surroundings, realising that they were already halfway to his apartment – it was time for him to tell November what he wanted the blonde to do.

Not looking at the man who looked relaxed, the assassin started to talk.

"I need you to provide a distraction somewhere south half an hour before midnight, so I can get Mei and Yîng out of the police station. Afterwards you can meet Mei at the entrance of the park and ask her what you want to know. Is that okay?"

He finally turned his gaze to November, who had been listening quietly until then.

Nodding slightly, the older one of the two asked what kind of distraction the Chinese man would like, which caused Hei to think about what would be best in such a situation and how to word it in a way that would still let him look relatively innocent in the blonde's eyes – which was extremely difficult, since Jack had obviously already noticed the assassin's abilities to lie and act and he knew about part of the Black Reaper's past.

Sighing inwardly, he finally answered, shrugging slightly.

"I don't really know, but something large and flashy would be good – can you do that?"

Again he turned to look at the MI6 agent, this time deliberately letting their eyes meet and expressing uncertainty and doubt with them.

Noticing that November started to glower at the implied lack of faith in his abilities, Hei turned away to hide his smirk while the Brit murmured his agreement.

The assassin leant back and closed his eyes – they would soon arrive at his flat and he had to think about what he was going to do next and how he was going to do it.

* * *

Slowly November 11 walked into the hotel suite he shared with the rest of his tem-mates. He didn't bother with turning on the lights and he also didn't open the curtains to let in the already vanishing light of the day.

He had to think.

Sinking into the couch, the thirty-two years old man sighed slightly as he closed his eyes, thinking back to what had happened that day.

He couldn't believe that it had only been a few hours – it seemed more like weeks – but a glance at the clock before he closed his eyes again proved that it had only been about half a day that he had spent in the company of Li Shengshun – enigma extraordinaire.

Chuckling slightly at the thought he concentrated on what he had learned that day, the slight smile on his lips fading away.

From seeing the dark haired man again, to listening to a conversation that confirmed his suspicion about Li's lying abilities, to the younger one getting hurt, to listening to his life-story, to being caught in a very embarrassing situation by one of his team-mates, to freezing April's beer-cans, to being hugged by a small girl, the day had been stressful and it was far from over yet.

Listening to Shengshun while he had explained who Mei Ling and Ying were in reality had surprised him and he really hadn't known how to react after the younger male was done, so he simply hadn't reacted.

He knew it was callous of him, but he had never been someone who felt comfortable with comforting or reassuring others, so he didn't have any experience with it – not that the younger man had behaved like he needed to be reassured.

November remembered that Misaki had once told him that the Chinese man was tough and he had already seen several examples of that, but now he really had to admire that sturdiness – few people who had lived through a broken family, who had been betrayed and who had witnessed the destruction of the days after the Gates had appeared first hand were still as intact as Shengshun.

Jack almost sighed, before he decided that that had been done way to many times that day and instead took of his jacket and tie and rolled up the sleeves of his shirt.

Another thing that bothered him was the girl, Yîng.

There had to be a reason for the syndicate to be after her and whatever said reason was, the MI6 agent doubted that he would like it, because there was a large possibility that she was either a Contractor, or she was a witness to a crime and while he hoped it was the latter, it was more realistic to think that the former was correct.

She didn't behave like a normal Contractor, but that could have something to do with meeting Shengshun, since he seemed to have a strange affect on their kind – even April, who had only met him that day, had liked him and had been way more obnoxious than usual. What had surprised November and probably everyone else too, had been July's reaction to the Chinese man. Dolls were usually non-expressive and apathetic, to the point where it was doubtful that they had souls, but his youngest team-mate had responded to the dark haired male.

Turning his mind back to Yîng, he again wondered why the syndicate was after her and if the first reason he had thought about was true, what her powers were, for her to be that hunted.

For some reason he had to think about how she had hugged him and smiled at him as if she knew him, even calling him 'Jack' – he didn't buy Shengshun's excuse, that there was someone who looked like him and even had the same name, for a second.

But why had she acted that familiar and what had she really called him? Before she had said his name, she had called him something and he really wished he knew what it was, since both Mei Ling and her brother-in-law had been completely and utterly shocked, and while Li was usually a very open person – or at least _pretended_ to be an open person – it was rare to see such an extreme expression on his face.

Shaking his head, November couldn't help but wonder if it wasn't that it had been such an extreme, but that it had been such a genuine expression, but he drove that thought from his mind – for now.

He still had several other questions he wanted an answer for, but he decided to leave them alone for some time until he could catch the younger man off-guard with them.

Maybe he could make sure that way that he could get an honest response.

Finally giving in and sighing slightly, he thought back to when he had first met the younger man. He had compiled a list of words that could describe him best and while he now had several more to add, he also had a few to cross out.

_Naïve, good-natured, gullible, patient, dark, intelligent, young,__ on the taller side of average, more beautiful than handsome, charismatic, had the potential to be dangerous, a wonderful cook, good listener, had a sharp wit, unlucky, accident-prone, tough and slight._

That had been the original list, but after hearing about the man's past and witnessing first hand how good an actor he was, the MI6 agent couldn't help but wonder how much he really knew about Shengshun – how many of the other features he had described the younger on with, were wrong.

Taking a deep breath, he went through the list, thinking about what had to go, what had to stay and what had to be added.

The physical descriptions could stay, since they were really the only things he was sure about, but that still left the rest of the features.

Dark, intelligent, patient, tough, good cook, good listener, sharp wit and unlucky seemed correct too, since they were things that he had experienced first-hand and he had realised them despite the Shengshun's efforts.

The two that definitely had to go were naïve and gullible – no one could live through what had happened to Li without realising the cruelty of the world and, while the younger man had explained that he and his sister had been taken in by someone, November was sure that the siblings had spent some time on the streets and the time after the gates had appeared had been one of the darkest in centuries.

Another thing he wasn't sure about anymore was just how good-natured the dark haired man was – it seemed he was humouring people most of the time, but the reactions to Mei Ling and Ying that Jack had witnessed convinced the MI6 agent that you only got one chance with Li and if you were stupid enough to throw it away, he wasn't one who forgave easily.

That was probably something else that had to do with Shengshun's past – people who have been betrayed too many times stopped trusting and it seemed that that had happened to the Chinese man.

The whole time through the story, November had had to force himself to calm down, something that rarely happened to him. In his line of work he had already seen a lot of atrocities being committed, but the apathetic way it had been told had worn on him, as if the younger one simply retold something he had read.

Annoyed Jack thought that he should have asked what had happened to Li's brother – he would love to pay him a visit, which startled him again.

It seemed that, every time he met with the younger male, he got more and more emotional and there was nothing he could do against that, since even the time they had spent apart hadn't returned him to his usual, emotionless state – it was aggravating, something that November cursed, since it was another feeling he was helpless against.

The more he thought about it, the angrier he got, which annoyed him even more, which caused him to think about it again – it really was a vicious circle.

Sighing again, the Brit opened his eyes and looked at what he could make out of the ceiling in the darkness – despite the feeling that he had been lied to, he couldn't help but feel protective of Shengshun, something he never would have thought possible.

_It seems that 'charismatic' can stay on the list too._ Was the only thing he thought, wanting to get rid of that can of worms as quickly as possible.

Despite his efforts though, he couldn't help but think back to the hand he had been holding throughout the younger one's explanation – pale, calloused, smaller than his and hiding great strength. It had been barely noticeable, but unconsciously November had noticed a slight pressure on his hand at certain points of the story and it had told him which parts of it had the most impact on the other man.

Running said appendage through his hair, he glowered again when he thought about April – he had noticed that he had held Li's hand after the first time it had tightened, but when he had heard about the syndicate he had completely forgotten about it and it had been mortifying to be caught doing something like that. Despite his womanising ways, he wasn't a very physical person when it came to showing affection in public and while _holding hands _with Shengshun definitely wasn't a sign of affection or reassurance, he still didn't want to be seen doing that. Definitely not.

Jumping to his feet, he made his way to the kitchen and walked to the fridge where he took out a bottle of water, opening the cap and drinking slowly, contemplating the last two adjectives on his list: the potential to be dangerous and accident-prone.

He wasn't sure if he should cross out 'accident-prone' or not, since it was quite obvious now that the Chinese man wasn't nearly as clumsy as he pretended to be and, while he had bad luck that was already covered with 'unlucky'.

After some time, he decided to discard accident-prone and to simply add trouble-magnet in its place – that would fit wonderfully to the other blue eyed man.

Snorting slightly as he thought about all the trouble Li had already gotten into in the short time they had known each other, November frowned when he remembered the last description on his list: has the potential to be dangerous.

He had deliberately saved this one until the end of his analysis, but now he didn't really know what to do with it.

Well, that was a lie.

He did know what to do with it he just didn't want to do it. Ever since he had met the younger male, he had suspected that Shengshun was a lot more dangerous than most people thought and the story he had been told that day, only confirmed his suspicion.

He would have to leave away the 'has potential to be' and to add 'dangerous' to his list.

Throwing the now empty bottle into the trash, November exited the kitchen and made his way to the living room again. In a way he felt that it was unfortunate that he had to find out the darker side of the well-liked Li, but that couldn't be helped and, if he was honest with himself, Jack preferred the darker version of Shengshun to the happy-go-lucky one.

He didn't have to worry about tainting him like this, after all the life of a MI6 agent was dangerous and one came into contact with all kinds of filth so it wasn't rare that someone, who was not a Contractor, snapped and went berserk.

November was a Contractor and as such the chance of him losing his mind was slim, but the only real difference between a normal human and someone like him was, that after some time, the blood on the normal person's hands and the taint that they carried with them, would break them someday with guilt, while a Contractor, who could also feel the same blood and taint, simply didn't care about it.

If he had any more contact to Shengshun he was glad that he wouldn't have to worry about the younger one being naïve, he somehow had the feeling life would be easier for him.

_Not that I plan on being around him very long, though he is quite interesting…_

The unexpected darkness in Shengshun's character had made him even more interesting though, since November now couldn't really be sure that the younger male had told him the truth when he had asked questions for the first time several weeks ago.

Perhaps it was strange of him, perhaps he should have felt betrayed because he had been lied to, but somehow that made everything more interesting. He had always loved puzzles and Li Shengshun was definitely an enigma he would like to solve.

Shaking his head at his absurd thoughts, he added 'good liar' and 'exceptional actor' to the list – hadn't he known about that darker side of Li's and hadn't he had it confirmed, he never would have guessed that he was anything other than an innocent student.

Sighing, he decided that that was all he was going to change with his list – it was time to decide what he was going to do as a distraction for Li and Yîng, after all, after the doubt he had seen in the younger man's eyes, he would have to do something appropriately flashy to get rid of that uncertainty.

Stilling for a moment, he started to laugh as he realised that he had been had.

_He really is an incredible actor._ He thought with admiration – Shengshun had deliberately acted as if he had doubted the Brit to annoy him into doing something large and extravagant.

Smirking slightly, November decided to add 'cunning' and 'shrewd' to the list, before he started to work.

_I don't want to disappoint after all._

* * *

Hei closed the door behind him, already feeling exhausted and knowing it was only going to get worse that night, when he had to break out his sister-in-law and his niece from the police-station and get Yîng to his friends.

Hesitating slightly, he stared at the table he always ate at – he didn't like it, but it was time to make a call. He couldn't help but wonder how on earth he had gotten to a normal day (at least for him), to an afternoon of planning something that his employers really wouldn't appreciate.

Deciding to first do something against the pounding in his temples, he walked to his closet, where he kept a small kit of medicine and a large bag full of antiseptic and bandages. He usually rarely took pain-killers and the like, since they affected his thought-process and made him sluggish, but the headache had grown to such proportions that it was impossible for him to concentrate anyway and being a little tired was better than being unconcentrated and distracted.

After dry-swallowing the pill he turned towards the table again and this time he didn't hesitate – slowly he reached beneath it and dislodged a floor-board. Inside the hole that opened, there were several keys and a cell-phone, the latter of which he took out and put it beside him as he put the floor-board back into its usual position.

When he had finished, he slowly stood, taking the cell into his hand and wondering if he was doing the right thing.

Looking at it, he mused that it was idiotic and only a fool without self-preservation instincts would do something downright stupid like betraying the syndicate and expecting to get away with it.

Hei shrugged and decided that he had never been one for following rules exactly and, before he could have second thoughts, he quickly dialled a number he had memorised ages ago. The phone on the other side was picked up after the second dial-tone and a hoarse, male voice answered grumpily.

"What?"

Amused the dark haired man arched his eyebrows as he answered in a low voice, waiting for the expected reaction.

"Is that the way you greet old friends?"

For a moment everything was silent and the assassin wondered if he had broken the other's brain – said thought vanished, when a loud scream almost burst his ear-drum.

_That's the second time today – honestly, people should learn a little self-control…_

"HEI!! What on earth are you doing calling me at this time of the night!!"

Before he could answer, he was asked another question, almost like an afterthought.

"Why on earth are you calling me anyway? I thought you said that you'd never call me? Did you rethink my offer?"

The syndicate member couldn't help but roll his eyes when he heard the lewd tone the other male's voice had taken on at the last question, before he shut down his emotions and answered coldly – he wasn't interested in the other and he had no intention of giving him false hope.

"I changed my mind and I need to call in a favour. And no, I didn't rethink it, so don't even try."

Unconsciously he had changed his face into an emotionless mask, it being such a reflex that he couldn't have stopped it had he tried.

Immediately after mentioning the favour, the voice on the other end grew serious.

"Say the word and I'll do anything you ask."

For a moment Hei was surprised by the serious and devoted answer, feeling uncomfortable when he heard it, but he kept up his façade and continued to talk coldly as he answered.

"I need you to protect a Contractor for me – someone who is in trouble and needs a safe-house for a long time. I also need your brother to pick them up tonight, just after midnight Japanese-time. Can you arrange that?"

"Of course – my brother and I will do everything to help you. You did save my life, after all."

Holding back a sigh of relief, the assassin remembered the two brothers he had met almost six years ago.

Their code-names were Cat and Dog – they had been in a different team during the fights in South America.

Thy syndicate had a weird naming system that Hei had never really been able to figure out – he, Pai and several other members had always had the same code-names, no matter what team they were in, but other's names changed practically every week.

A good example for that were Amber and Carmine. When they worked with the CIA and the MI6 respectively, their code-names had been February and Havoc, but when they had been out into the same team as Hei and his sister, they had been changed.

It was probably to make identifying a team easier, since Amber, Carmine, Pai and Hei were all colours, though in different languages, but the assassin still didn't know what the factors were for a name to be changed.

Dog was a Contractor with the power to teleport and who was extremely protective of his younger brother Cat.

He had first met the younger one of the two when he had stumbled across his body – Cat had had a knife stuck in the hollow of his throat and Hei had gotten him to a pair of doctors that had lived nearby and had thus saved the other man's life, something that neither of the brothers had forgotten.

Later he had learned that the one who had attacked the younger brother had been one of their own team, which caused them to deflect from the organisation they worked for and caused them to distrust non-Contractors (which was ironic, since Cat was a normal human).

Unfortunately, Cat had decided that he liked his saviour and had started to offer the Chinese man opportunities to 'relief stress' as he had called it, every time they talked to each other – something that had at first amused, but later only annoyed him, as he really wasn't interested in the other like that.

Stopping that train of thought, he replied, not giving any indication that he had made a short trip down the memory-lane.

"Good, don't forget, after midnight Japanese-time, tell Dog to meet me in the abandoned warehouse in the north outside the city. It's right beside a large lake, so there's no way he can miss it. I'll be waiting there for him."

The assassin paused for a moment, as Cat repeated what he had said, telling him that it was no problem at all. Again Hei hesitated, but after a moment he decided that it was worth the later annoyance when Red started to harass him again.

"Thank you."

Before the other could reply, the assassin had already hung up on him, sighing slightly as he broke the cell-phone apart and threw it into the trash to dispose of it.

Just after he had done that, he heard a noise coming form the window.

Hoping that Mao had enough sense to heed the warning that the Chinese man had given him last time, he quickly made his way to the window, opening it slightly to let the man-turned-cat into the room.

Mao jumped onto the floor comfortably and looked around for a moment, before turning to his team-mate and taking in his apathetic features that did nothing to hide the tiredness the assassin felt.

"We have new orders, Hei – this time it's something more permanent than usual."

Arching an eyebrow the human syndicate member indicated to Mao he should continue to speak.

"Another Contractor-member and, as I heard it, her guardian deserted and managed to avoid capture for several weeks. Our orders are to keep an eye on things and, if we notice something, we have to report to the bosses. If we come into contact with them, capture them, or at least capture the girl alive. The guardian is unnecessary."

For a moment the assassin stared at the cat before he nodded – his face still an emotionless mask, hiding that he was cursing inwardly.

Before he had gotten the orders he could have pretended not to know anything in case it was found out that he had helped Mei and Yîng, but now he was going against direct orders from the top – if he wasn't careful, it could get ugly.

Noticing that Mao seemed to wait for something, a thought struck Hei and, quickly before the other Contractor noticed something, he added an afterthought.

"How am I to identify them? I assume that the Contractor is a female minor, but what about her guardian and what about pictures?"

He gave the cat a hard stare, as if he couldn't believe that he had to ask such an obvious question and relaxed inwardly when he noticed that the other syndicate member relaxed a little.

"Huang will get the pictures in the next few days, but other than that, I can only tell you that both of them are female and, as you already noticed, the Contractor is a female minor."

For a moment it seemed as if he wanted to add something, but after some time Mao turned around and jumped onto the windowsill, telling his colleague a quick goodbye and leaving hurriedly.

Hei could just barely hear the other's low grumbling as he walked away.

"I told Huang that he has nothing to do with it but no, nobody believes me! I'm just a stupid cat after all and what can an animal say about humans, they only have pea-sized brains anyway…"

Letting out a shaky breath, the assassin closed the window, insanely glad that he had called Mao's trap, despite the pain-killers in his system.

He wondered why the Contractor – or rather Huang as it seemed – thought he had something to do with the two deserters and every possibility was unsettling.

The first one was that someone had found out – despite all the pains he and Pai had taken to convince everyone that they had no family left – that Mei and Yîng were his relatives, and he was helping them.

Another possibility was that the bosses thought that it was impossible for a mere human and a Contractor with a passive power that she didn't even want to use, to evade capture for such a long time. Meaning, they thought that they had had help and decided to check every syndicate member who could help them.

In their team it was probably only him that had been checked – Yin didn't need to be checked as she was a Doll, Huang was way to scared of the syndicate's revenge to try something like that and Mao wasn't in a position, nor did he have the power or means to really help them, which only left him, Hei, as possible traitor.

Unfortunately they were right, but he didn't think that he was in any danger right now, since he had successfully deceived his team-mate.

Another good thing was, that he still had time and the orders weren't urgent, which meant that he had more than enough time to smuggle Yîng out of the country.

Mao had said that Huang was going to get the pictures in a few days and, considering the syndicate's workings, it was safe to assume that other people stationed in the city were going to get them at the same time – which meant that there would be few alert people that could become trouble for him and November 11.

_I only hope he fell for it and will do__ something incredibly flashy…_

While it now seemed unnecessary, Mei had said that there were more than enough members of the organisation in Japan to hunt them and a distraction would be ideal for them. It would also keep the police off his back and he had more room for mistakes – not that he really made any, but it was better to be safe than sorry – when he broke Mei and Yîng out of the police station.

_Not that they're under arrest…_

They weren't imprisoned, but it was safe to say that they had a guard to make them feel 'safe' and to make sure that they really were as innocent as they pretended to be.

_Which they're not but Misaki-san and Saito-san don't have to know that._

Deciding to make something to eat, he thought about the plan he made, checking that there were no giant holes that could become dangerous but that it was loose enough to improvise.

It was simple: November would cause a distraction and when the police was busy he would get Mei and Yîng out and send Mei to the park where, hopefully, Jack was waiting. In the meantime he would accompany his niece to the old warehouse and wait for Blue to show up. When the other Contractor arrived, he would let Dog take her with him and then he could go home and forget about it – the sooner he forgot about it, the less suspicious people would be, because when someone believes they are innocent it is much easier to convince others of the same belief than when one has the feeling that they're guilty.

_This is going to be a long night…_

* * *

Silently Saito pretended to work, though in reality he was watching his beloved chief. Misaki was furiously working and the others in their section were carefully avoiding her, since she seemed to have a rotten mood, which was unusual after meeting with Li Shengshun.

Sighing slightly, Saito thought about the younger man, not knowing if he should dislike him or like him.

On one hand it was painfully obvious that the Section-Chief of Section 4 had a crush on the Chinese man, which was painful for the police-man, since he had loved her for ages.

On the other hand, Li was obviously completely oblivious to whatever affection people felt for him – which was sad and endearing at the same time, since one almost got the feeling that Shengshun couldn't recognise positive feelings like love in another person.

He was also a kind and friendly young man who tried to find his place in the world (if the constantly changing part-time jobs were anything to go by) and he was too awkward and too much of a klutz to really be disliked.

A loud noise snapped him out of his thoughts and he looked up to see Misaki head towards his desk, a frown marring her face. Bracing himself for the worst, he swallowed thickly and resisted the urge to crawl underneath his table when he noticed the pitying looks he was given from his colleagues.

_Great help they are._

Saito was just starting to sweat when his chief arrived at his desk, leant in as close as possible (which would have been attractive weren't she that annoyed) and quietly asked him a question he never would have expected, careful that the others in the room couldn't hear what was said.

"Saito, do you think that there's something going on between November 11 and Li-kun?"

The burly man almost chocked on his spit when he realised just what she was asking and what had bothered her since the MI6 agent had taken the Chinese man home and didn't return.

Clearing his throat, he questioned her. "What makes you think that there's something going on between them?"

For a moment she looked at him as if he had been kidnapped by aliens while Li had translated for them.

"Well for once it's the atmosphere when they're near each other. Didn't you notice that November never took his eyes off Li-kun? And when they greeted each other and April mentioned that Li-kun didn't use a suffix, they stared at each other and didn't notice anything else. Besides November volunteered to take care of Li-kun's wounds and he even took him home, which is extremely strange, don't you think?"

Saito thought about it for some time before he answered, aware that the rest of their team had gathered and was whispering about what on earth they could talk about.

"It could also be that Simon-san is simply curious about Li-kun. You can't deny that he's a little… strange, so I don't think that it's anything like that."

Smiling at her to reassure her, he wondered why he hadn't simply told her that he thought that the two of them had a hot romance going – he couldn't help but grimace slightly at the thought, since he really wasn't very fond of the MI6 agent – to reduce the number of his rivals by two, but he didn't think about it too much.

He wasn't the kind of person who lied to others just to further himself.

"If it's only that, I really don't think that there is anything going on between them."

The smile on his face faded when Misaki fidgeted a little, making him look at her in askance until she burst out with what she wanted to say.

"April said she saw the two of them holding hands in the infirmary."

For a moment his brain froze as it refused to take in the words that had been said, but after some time it barely managed to function again.

"Holding… hands?"

Disbelief coloured his voice and he stared at her for a few seconds as his mind conjured up the image of November 11 – cold-blooded killer Contractor – holding hands with Li Shengshun – klutzy, friendly and kind hearted young man – and probably whispering sweet nothings to each other.

Disturbed he shook his head and frantically thought about a rational explanation, only relaxing slightly when he found one.

"I'm sure April misunderstood then, after all Simon-san was bandaging Li-kun's hands, so it's only natural that their hands touched."

Satisfied with his explanation, he leant back in his seat, smiling at Misaki again, though she didn't look happy with his excuse – sorry, explanation – but she didn't say anything and went back to her desk.

_What's going on? I thought she would be happy to hear this, but instead it's almost as if she wants them to be together…_

Shrugging slightly Saito ignored the curious and questioning glances he got from his team-mates and instead concentrated on the work he still had to do.

_Whatever they do is none of my business after all, though I have to wonder what they see in each other – a killer and an oddball. A strange combination__, even for a friendship…_

* * *

November 11, best agent of the MI6, was well known for his rather inventive mind, as many of his enemies could confirm, but even he had to admit that the distraction he had built in the last few hours was one of his better ideas.

Gently he adjusted the cap on the head of one of the manikins he had bought after he had finished brooding about Shengshun and smirked as he took another look around the room of the abandoned house he had found in the south of the city.

Another human-sized doll was standing in the shadow of a corner, the darkness making it seem alive.

_If I didn't know it was a doll, I would be freaked out._

He had placed the manikins throughout every room in the building and after some hard work he had managed to place bombs, electro-shockers, water-pipes that could burst and several other rather… unusual devices near said dolls. Who would have known that staging a fight between Contractors was that easy?

His smirk growing even more pronounced he resisted the urge to rub his hands like a greedy merchant having completed the sale of his life.

Now he only had to manage to get out of the room without blowing the house up in his face.

* * *

Taking another look at the clock on his wall, Hei decided it was time to get ready, if he wanted to be punctual.

Standing up from his table and looking at the empty dishes still standing there, he decided that he would do them when he was back from his self-imposed mission and made his way to his closet.

He had decided to wear something that looked similar to his usual mission-clothes: a pair of black trousers with large pockets on its sides, boots and a black sleeveless shirt with a wide collar.

Putting several tools into the pockets on the outside of his tights, while hoping he wouldn't need them, he took out a dark mask and fingered the fabric for a moment before he turned off the lights and pulled it over his head, so that it rested around his neck, his face still uncovered. He then took a dark grey jacket and made his way to the window, opening it and slipping outside.

He easily climbed down to the floor and started to make his way to the police station while slipping on a pair of thin back gloves – it was time to put his plan into motion.

* * *

Finally arriving at the building that the police used as headquarters, he hid himself in a large tree, felling a slight sentiment of déjà vu, Hei settled himself in for a wait – he was early.

Having nothing better to do, the assassin wondered what November 11 was going to do as distraction and he was also curious whether it would work or not.

When the time finally came to start with the plan, the Chinese man pulled the dark mask over his mouth and nose, so that only his eyes were still visible and let himself fall onto the ground.

Crouching there, he waited for some time, when he suddenly noticed that a hoard of people ran out of the station and into the cars parked in front – Hei could barely hear that they were talking about a 'fight between Contractors' and he was curious about what on earth the MI6 agent had done to convince the station of that.

Besides that, he could also hear panicked comments about how it was impossible because it hadn't been detected by the National Astronomical Observatory and wondering if it could possibly be a new kind of Contractor.

Snorting slightly the assassin couldn't help but feel slightly disappointed that the police were that naïve and that quick to disregard their knowledge and experience – they should know that their kind couldn't fight without their stars reacting, so they shouldn't be that quick to unsettle.

Waiting until the commotion had died down, he made his way to the back of the building, locating an open window leading to a dark room several stories above and using his grappling hook to get to it. He crouched on the windowsill and made sure that the room really was empty before entering it, leaving the window open in case he had to use it as an exit.

Hei the looked for a light switch and, when he found it, he used a small knife to rip off the plastic covering and put his hand to the wires. Soon afterwards, he could see that the light that had shone through the space at the bottom of the door into the room had vanished.

Quickly he made his way out into the corridor and made his way to the place where he knew Mei and Yîng were – November had contacted him to tell him their whereabouts after his two relatives had finally been taken to a room.

The assassin had to avoid several people, who were cursing and wondering why the emergency power supply wasn't working, but it was easy for the one called Black Reaper, as he had gotten the name not only because of his ruthlessness, but also because of his stealth – nobody could see him coming and nobody could see him leaving. He was like a ghost in a sense.

_I wonder if that means that I'm dead too…_

Ignoring the rather morbid thought, he finally arrived at the right floor and immediately had to duck behind a corner to avoid a pair of patrolling police-men.

Waiting until they were gone, he continued on his way to Mei Ling and Yîng, avoiding people when possible, knocking them out when impossible, but always making sure that nobody could get a look at him.

When he arrived at the room, he could see that a guard was stationed in front of it, sitting in a chair and being sound asleep.

The assassin couldn't help but feel contempt – one would think that these people would take their duty more seriously.

_After all there could be someone coming to break the two of them out…_

Moving so that he stood in front of the man, Hei put his hand on his shoulder and gave him a brief electrical shock, to make sure he would stay unconscious during the time he needed to get the two 'witnesses' out of the station.

After being sure that the man wouldn't wake up, he took the keys that were hanging from the police-man's belt and looked for the right one to open the door with. Having found it after some time, the assassin quickly opened the door and only having time to realise that the room was dark, before he had to avoid the chair coming at his face.

Blocking it a second time, he jerked the piece of furniture out of his sister-in-law's hands and harshly looked at her before losing his temper.

"_What on earth do you think you're doing?"_

Mei Ling stared at him, obviously mortified that she had attacked the one who was helping her out and apologised profusely – something that Hei ignored, as he turned his attention to the window.

He closed the door behind him, set down the chair that had been used against him and made his way to the exit he had been eyeing.

It was a normal window, that could be opened and closed at leisure, another thing that the dark haired man saw as a grave oversight in the time and age of Contractors, though, he had to admit, if a Contractor really wanted to get into a room, even locked windows weren't something that could keep him from doing so for long.

Shaking his head slightly, he opened the window and in one smooth movement crouched on the windowsill, something that he had learned to do years ago and something that was still useful to know, since it was practical and trained his balance.

Without looking at her, he gave Mei several orders, while he got his grappling hook ready and made sure it was safe to transport three – well, two and a half – people on it.

He didn't have to be that careful with it when it was only him that was using it, but when it had to carry a greater weight, it was better to be safe than sorry – or rather, it was better to be safe than a pancake-like splatter of gore on the ground.

"_Wake Yîng up and rip one of the sheets apart. Use it to bind the two of you together, I don't want to lose one of you and have to scrape you off the asphalt outside."_

He could feel Mei's glare digging into the back of his head as he waited for them to get ready. When his sister-in-law had finished binding the still groggy and incoherent girl to her body, Hei turned around and indicated that they should come to him. He dreaded slightly what was gong to happen next, but if everything went well, he wouldn't have to be close to the two of them for more than a few seconds.

The assassin thought a little as he realised that it would be difficult for the woman to climb onto the windowsill while Yîng was bound to her and he quickly jumped into the room again, got the chair that had almost given him a concussion and put it in front of the window before he again moved to crouch on the window-ledge.

The mother glared at him as he made no move to help her actually get onto the chair, but she didn't verbally complain about it, so Hei really didn't care, which was probably childish of him.

When Mei had finally managed to get herself and her daughter onto the piece of furniture, the assassin grimaced slightly, knowing that his sister-in-law wouldn't be able to see his expression due to the mask and the darkness.

He wrapped an arm around Mei and Yîng, so that the child was between the two of them, her mother's arms tightly wrapped around her. His other hand was holding on to the grappling hook that was anchored in the wall beside the window. When he had a good grip on both, he let himself fall backwards, barely remembering to whisper to both females that they shouldn't make a noise.

Long years of experience with his tools saved Hei yet again, as he almost dislocated his shoulder trying to hold on to Mei and his niece. Groaning slightly as he felt his shoulder ache because of the strain, he managed to land them safely on the ground, stumbling slightly as he released the grappling hook – Mei Ling and Yîng even fell to the floor as they were still bound together.

As soon as he got his footing back, the dark haired man cut away the sheet that held them together with his knife, quickly pulling them to their feet and pushing them to the trees that he had hidden in while he had waited for the plan to start.

When they were relatively hidden by the small amount of trees and bushes someone had planted to give the building a 'lively' feeling, Hei stopped and looked at his sister-in-law and his niece, making sure that they didn't have any injuries that could slow them down. Relieved to see that they were okay, he turned his gaze to the police building – the lights still hadn't turned on, which gave him more time until they found out that Mei and Yîng were gone.

"_We have to hurry up, so say your goodbyes and let's leave – it's dangerous here."_

As a Contractor he shouldn't have felt anything about it, and if he felt anything, it should have been satisfaction, that one of those who had driven him and Pai to become syndicate members was finally getting her due, but instead Hei only felt a dull ache in his chest as he looked at his sister-in-law's expression.

She looked like she was about to cry and only the fact that she wanted to spare her child the memory of a despairing mother kept her from dissolving into tears –it reminded him of his own mother as she tried to be strong while being ripped apart when he and Xîng had been taken away from her.

Yîng however stayed completely calm. Were she someone else, were she a normal human child, the assassin would think that she didn't understand what was happening. As it stood though, he knew that she understood very well what was about to take place, maybe she knew more than any of them – she just didn't care.

Turning his eyes away from the scene, he looked at the station again – it wouldn't be long until they would manage to repair the damage he had done.

He turned back to the two females and saw that Mei was still hugging her daughter fiercely, murmuring soothing nonsense into her ear.

"_That's enough, we have to go. Mei Ling, you go to the park, Jack will pick you up there. Yîng, you come with me."_

The woman flinched, as if someone had struck her, but she slowly let go of the girl in her arms, looking at her face as if she was burning it into her memory.

Then she looked at him and Hei was caught off guard by the look she gave him – it was sad and happy, hating and loving at the same time, guilt and satisfaction were warring on her face, before she closed her eyes.

"_We won't see each other again, Míng Yè. I can promise you that."_

He had stiffened when he had heard that name and, annoyed that it still affected him like that, his reply was biting.

"_Míng Yè is dead, no thanks to you. And you're right we won't see each other again – because if we ever do, I will be the last thing you will ever lay eyes on."_

Mei looked like she had been expecting such an answer, but for some reason she looked bothered by something.

"_In your eyes I have wronged you, so it's only natural that you want to take revenge, but you shouldn't forget this."_

Their eyes met and again Hei was surprised that he had to force himself to keep looking into them.

"_You are not a thing. Don't ever forget that you are a person."_

Speechless he looked at the woman he had once loved as a sister and now hated like few and knew that she was feeling the same thing – he was now the one thing that she hated and it would probably please her that she wasn't the only one who despised what he was.

Not knowing what to say in reply, he simply repeated the orders he had already given once and without giving her a second glance, he grabbed his niece by her arm and pulled her out of the bushes and into the streets, his dark clothes making him invisible in the darkness, though the same couldn't be said of Yîng with her light clothes.

The assassin paused in a shadowed corner and slipped off his jacket, wrapping it around the girl's small form, before taking off his mask. In the still relatively crowded streets it would catch more attention than he wanted and needed, so it was easier to pull it off and put it into one of his pockets.

His niece had been watching him with an almost amused look on her face and Hei wondered how long she was going to live if she knew that much about the future, but such thoughts wouldn't lead to anything.

"You shouldn't always hide your pretty face."

Hei, who had started to walk again, stumbled a little when he heard that sentence come out of her mouth, in English no less, but he managed to catch himself and looked at her in astonishment.

"_What did you say?"_

She laughed at his expression, sounding much older than she was.

"_It's what Uncle Jack is always going to say to you when you use a mask for something. I don't know what it means, since I haven't learned that language yet, but Uncle will often say it to a__nnoy you. What does it mean?"_

That answer caught him even more off guard – he still couldn't imagine the womanising Brit as someone's uncle and that they would be close enough in the future for November to make such comments was also startling.

_Not that it stopped him today, did it?_

The assassin paused for a moment as he remembered the MI6 agent's comment in the infirmary, but then decided not to think about it any longer, also ignoring the girl's question.

They had already wasted too much time and if he wanted to be punctual, he was going to have to hurry up, so he held Yîng's hand a little tighter and quickened his steps.

They walked like that for quite some time and when he noticed that they were already close to the lake that was near the warehouse, he slowed his steps a little, making it easier for his niece to keep up.

No other person was in sight, but for some reason Hei felt unsettled.

The reason why he felt that way was answered by a wire that wrapped itself around his neck, tightening and cutting off his air-supply.

Yîng let go of his hand and backed away, giving the assassin enough room to hastily grab his knife and cut the thin nylon cord that was preventing him from breathing. With a jerk of his hand the string was off his throat and he whirled around to look at his attacker. It was a young woman, fit and clad in black, with short brown hair and grey, empty eyes.

When her eyes started to glow a bright red Hei knew he was in trouble.

* * *

Well, you managed to get through it and I hope you enjoyed it at least a little. :)

Yours,

TTF


	7. Chapter 7

Shades of Blue

A/N: Well, somehow, despite my best attempts to update early, everything always ends up being late... sigh

Sorry about the late update! The last few parts were difficult to write, but I hope you'll enjoy them anyway!

* * *

The assassin barely had time to react when the ground he was standing on caved in, making him lose his balance.

He didn't try to get his footing back, knowing it would be a lost cause when the earth beneath his feet was that unsteady, instead he let himself fall backwards, tucking into a roll and getting to his feet again, just outside the circle that would have been his undoing had he stayed there.

It had taken him less than a second and he could see that the woman was surprised about the skill he had shown with just that movement, but soon the surprised look changed into a gleeful one, her formerly empty eyes filling with blood-lust.

_How come that most of the Contractors I met lately are bloodthirsty bastards?_

Jumping to the side to avoid a throwing knife, Hei answered the question he had asked himself.

_Right, because Contractors are killing-machines and those I met years ago were an exception. I think. At least Pai was. Or maybe they've always been that way and just hid their thirst for blood better…_

Stopping his thought-process, he ran towards the woman, again avoiding throwing knifes, as he got closer and closer.

She finally panicked when he was only a few feet away from her and used her power again, making him stumble, though he used him momentum and made a roll to the front, landing in a crouch and missing her with his knife by mere inches as the ground behind him crumbled away, leaving a decently sized hole in its place.

The woman had dodged away into Yîng's direction, and Hei tensed as he realised that she was only a few steps away from the place where his niece had hidden herself.

The other Contractor didn't notice, thankfully, but she used her powers again, this time splitting apart the earth between them – it seemed she wanted to say something.

The assassin held back, deciding to let her talk in case he could distract her enough to get through her guard.

"Are you the girl's guardian?"

In a way he supposed he was, now that Yîng's mother had parted ways with them, but that wasn't any of her business. Realising that she wouldn't get an answer, the woman continued to talk.

"The two of you betrayed the syndicate – there's no way you'll ever be safe again, so you should stop being difficult and give up already!"

While she was talking, Hei looked for a good anchor for his grapple hook – if he wanted to get rid of this obstacle quickly, he would have to surprise her. Usually he would have thrown his knife at her and electrocuted her through the wire it was connected with, but he had left his trademark weapon at home.

It was too dangerous to use his powers or any of the weapons he usually used, since he was infamous in the syndicate for being a ruthless killer and because of that, the tools he used where relatively well known, at least with the ones in a higher position. They would recognise his work were he to use his usual equipment. That was also the reason he couldn't use his powers – if he wanted the syndicate to be oblivious to his doings, he was going to have to make sure that there was nothing that could be traced back to him and that included a reaction of his star.

"I work for the syndicate too! I now know your face and if I inform my superiors, there is no place on earth you could hide from us – we'll find you wherever you are!"

Her words cause Hei's eyes to harden. She was right in one thing – she knew his face and if she informed the higher-ups of it, they would do everything in their power to make sure he was punished for both his treason and his knowledge. He had been in South America when the Gate had vanished and even if he only remembered little, it was still enough to make him interesting. Other than that, he was one of the best assassins and agents the syndicate had ever had and the knowledge about the missions he had been given alone would make it easy for him to be a nuisance.

That woman who knew his face, that Contractor – she had to go.

Finally opening his mouth and replying, he said the last words she would ever hear.

"You assume that you will still be alive to inform them – that's arrogant of you."

Shooting his grappling hook and barely waiting until it had anchored itself, he leapt over the ditch she had created and used his momentum to slam his feet into her chest, breaking several ribs and throwing her to the floor.

She lay there for several moments, utterly stunned by both, the attack and the pain, before she turned to the side and started to cough violently, forcing blood out of her punctured lung and onto the ground.

With several practised movements the assassin retracted his tool and took out his knife, kneeling beside the woman that had fought him.

He didn't know how she had known that Yîng was the one everyone was looking for, when her picture hadn't been released yet, but it didn't really matter. She had known, she had seen his face and she had to die because of it – that was all there was to it.

With his hand, he sharply pressed against her neck and watched as she immediately fell unconscious – he would have to make sure nobody could connect this to him, even if he had to kill her in a way that thoroughly disgusted him.

Without changing his expression, he brought the knife he was holding down, piercing her flesh and ripping her heart apart messily. It killed her instantly, but he didn't stop there, making several other wounds, all deep and angry and messy and he knew that he would think about this for a while – he would think about murdering someone with extraordinary brutality, just mere steps away from a place where his small niece was hiding and watching him.

Finally finished and feeling sick, he made sure that his clothes were clean besides the dust that clung to them because of his close contact with the ground – it wouldn't do to walk around the city, bloodstained like a deranged murderer.

His shirt was ruined, but he could get rid of it easily enough and Yîng was still wearing his jacket, so it wasn't really a problem.

Leaving the knife beside the body – it was a nondescript hunting knife he had bought years ago in a shop somewhere and there would be no clues leading to him – he walked to his niece, helping her out of the bush she had hidden herself in.

_What's it lately with trees and bushes…?_

Frowning slightly at the random thought, he guided the girl towards the warehouse where Dog was probably already waiting.

He was right of course – the former syndicate member was standing in front of the entrance of the building, impatiently tapping with his foot, when he caught sight of them.

"It's about time you show up! And what the hell?"

The question was obviously about Yîng's age and Hei's relatively bloodstained form, but immediately afterwards he simply rolled his eyes and sighed resigned.

Dog was a tall Caucasian man with dirty blonde hair and dark brown eyes – he looked a lot like his brother, but he was more serious and he didn't have a large scar on his throat. Nodding at him, Hei turned to Yîng, feeling that he should say something to her, but not really knowing what.

"_This is Dog, he'll take care of you__, though somehow I have the feeling that you already know that. Don't cause him trouble and avoid his brother."_

Not knowing what else to say, he ruffled her hair before he got her out of his jacket and took her closer to the other man.

"She's all yours. By the way, could you get rid of this for me?"

In one motion he slipped off his bloody shirt, wiped his face with its clean back and handed it to Dog, who stared at him and sighed.

"You still are as self-aware as a rock, aren't you? You can be glad that Cat isn't here."

The assassin paused for a second at the thought, but then he shrugged with a grimace and put on his jacket, zipping it closed.

It wasn't obvious that he wasn't wearing a shirt underneath, but Hei still decided to take less populated streets, once again cursing the fact that quite many people were out clubbing and having fun even at this time of the day – or rather night.

Yîng surprised him again when she hugged him tightly – she seemed to have the ability to make others speechless – and tugged on his jacket to get him to lean down. He obeyed her and, after hesitating slightly, he wrapped his arms around her, only for a moment, before he let go again.

He was just about to stand up, but then she whispered something to him that startled him again – though it was something he was slowly getting used to.

"_You know, she had a good reason for doing it, the __colour you don't like."_

Arching his eyebrows, he watched as she let go of him, running to Dog and taking his hand, as the other man looked back at Hei with an unreadable expression.

The assassin still crouched on the floor and he knew that he must look ridiculous, in dark clothes, just wearing a jacket, dirty and dusty from the fight – he also knew that the blonde was probably surprised that the one he only knew as the ruthless, brutal Black Reaper was capable of hugging a small girl.

Nodding at Dog to start teleporting, he watched as the blonde's eyes started to glow red, while his body was framed by a soft silvery blue light, as he wondered what his niece's comment meant.

Slowly the man and the child started to vanish, almost like a picture that faded, before they were suddenly gone, not leaving a trace of them behind. The assassin looked around for a moment, making sure that there was nobody around, before he started to make his way to the park where November 11 should be.

* * *

Jack Simon, also known as November 11, was grinning maniacally as he walked towards the slim figure of Mei Ling, who was waiting beside a fountain – it was quite a picturesque scene, what with the wind driving away the clouds that had prevented the stars to be seen. Not that the MI6 agent thought that the Chinese woman would spare these false stars a look, after everything that Shengshun had told him.

November's suit was smoking slightly and he was covered in soot and ash, but it was well worth the close look he had managed to get of the mock Contractor-battle he had fabricated – it had truly been a work of art and the best thing was, that it showed the police just how much they still had to work on, if they still worked that unreliably.

Oh, he wished he could see the expression on Misaki's face when she realised that her two witnesses had vanished as soon as her back was turned, but he thought that his presence would be more harmful that helpful, since he wasn't sure if he could hold back the grin that was surely going to give him away as participant of the whole break out.

Still, he was proud of what he had managed to create as distraction in the short period of time he had had to do it and only the thought of endangering Shengshun and himself with it had kept him from filming the whole event.

Explosions, water-fountains, sparks caused by electricity, fans giving the feeling of a storm, and a large fire had kept the police busy for quite a while, and would keep them busy for at least another few hours, but unfortunately the MI6 agent had had to leave earlier to talk to Wû Mei Ling, since it was dangerous for her to move around and he wasn't going to give up his one chance of finally getting information about the syndicate for a firework, no matter how good it was.

When he got to speaking length, he stopped and shot the woman a charming grin, but she seemed unimpressed and preoccupied with the separation from her daughter.

He was just about to start asking questions, but he was interrupted by Mei Ling, who was obviously impatient.

"Look, I'm going to answer all of your questions, but we are going to have to hurry, since I really don't want to run into Míng Yè again. Let's do it this way – you ask a question and I'll answer it to the best of my abilities, but you have to hurry up."

Arching his eyebrows at the harsh tone in her voice and the use of Shengshun's childhood name, November smirked slightly, before he started to inquire about the syndicate.

"How large of an organisation do you think it is, Mrs. Wû?"

She pressed her lips together for a moment, but then answered, hastily, but carefully.

"I don't know exactly, since my daughter and I were quite isolated, but from what I could gather, their people are everywhere, in every organisation that's worth mentioning. The CIA, the British MI, the Guojia Anquan Bu, the police in practically every country, they're everywhere."

For a moment November was silent, taking in this information – he had known that it was a large organisation, but he had never imagined that their infiltration had already progressed that far and that wide.

"Who and where are the leaders located?"

Before he had even finished the question, Mei was already shaking her head and shrugging slightly.

"Your guess is as good as mine. They're obviously people in a position of power, but there is no way to say who is involved and who isn't. I think that some of the top-agents know a few names, but other than that, there's really nothing known."

November nodded – it was only natural that a syndicate as careful as this one would hide their most important members. What he did know now, though, meant that he would have to be more cautious and suspicious when he dealt with Intelligence Agencies, including his own and he made a mental note to avoid situations in which he would be vulnerable.

"Do you know any agents that could know about anything?"

For some reason a small smirk made its way onto the woman's face as she answered, making Jack cautious.

"Yes, I know of one – he's quite famous and maybe you heard of him. He's a survivor of the war near the Heaven's Gate and some people say that he was even there when it vanished. He's also one of their top agents and knows a lot about it. I heard that he had been a member before he became a Contractor."

The Brit's eyes narrowed as he heard that. Any information about that incident was very valuable, since nobody knew what had happened there, and if what Mei Ling was saying was true, then, whoever that person was, they had to know a lot about the workings and doings of the organisation.

"Who is it?"

Again that strange smirk made its way onto her face.

"You've already met him from what I know. He is called the Black Reaper, but I hear his messier-code is BK201."

Jack's eyes widened as he realised that he had been close to an incredible amount of information about the ones he was hunting and he had let his chance slip away. Of course, at the time he had thought that the other Contractor was merely an ordinary member of the syndicate, but after what he had heard now, that man knew a lot of the information the blonde needed.

Cursing his over-confidence then, he asked another question.

"Do you know anything about him?"

The smirk vanished and for some reason she seemed sad – a complete turnabout of her emotions.

"No. I don't know him at all and I don't know anyone who does. That's all I can tell you."

Jack nodded, a little disappointed, but he couldn't really expect her to be the answer to all of his questions – in fact it was incredible that she knew as much as she did, though somehow he had the feeling that it had something to do with her daughter.

"Do you know anything else about the syndicate? Its headquarters, other members, their objectives – anything else?"

Again, before he had finished his question, the dark haired woman was already shaking her head.

"I really don't know anything else. I was only told little, since they were only interested in my daughter and I could only tell you these other things, because I found several files and because I overheard several conversations. I really don't know anything else."

November was quiet for some time before he nodded and smiled at her appreciatively – even if she didn't know a lot, it was still more information than he had thought he was going to get. More importantly, he now knew that he had to prioritise the capture of the Contractor BK201, if he wanted to find out the relevant things.

"Alright, if you don't know anything else, I think it's time for us to part ways. Goodbye." November shot her one last blinding smile before he turned around and started to walk away, making his way to another part of the park, where he had agreed to meet with Shengshun.

He didn't look back, but he could feel Mei Ling's gaze on his back and for a moment he couldn't help but wonder what on earth she was thinking about as she watched him leave.

He didn't ponder for long though – it was none of his business and he wasn't all that interested in it anyway. He had gotten the information that he wanted and that was all that mattered to him.

* * *

When Hei arrived at the park, November was already waiting for him, sitting on a bench and looking quite satisfied with himself.

The assassin frowned inwardly, cursing himself for not talking with his sister-in-law about what she knew and what she could tell the MI6 agent. If she had told the blonde something he shouldn't know, it could be disastrous for the Brit, Hei and their team-mates – something the dark haired man could do without.

Keeping that thought in the back of his mind, he greeted the older man with a small smile and couldn't help but be surprised when it was returned.

He moved to a tree opposite November and sat down on the ground, leaning against the trunk and finally letting the tension in his shoulders dissipate a little.

He was safe for now – he had managed to get Yîng out of the country, he had disposed of the syndicate member that had caught them and he had managed to get away from the scene unseen and without any evidence pointing towards him.

Hei knew that he would only ever really be able to relax when he and his team got the order to stop looking for his niece and even then there was still a chance that someone would find out. Shaking his head to clear his mind a little, he looked across the small distance between tree and bench and let his eyes meet the ones of the older Contractor, who had been watching him curiously.

"Did everything go well?"

Hei was the first one to break the silence between them and his question was answered with a smug smirk that contradicted November's rather dishevelled appearance.

"Yes, it went wonderfully. I wish you could have seen it, it was one of my better works, if I may say so."

The assassin really wanted to roll his eyes at the self-satisfied tone in the other's voice, but instead he shifted a little to be more comfortable against the rough bark and gave the blonde another smile, this one more brilliant than the last.

"Thank you for your help, I really appreciate it."

Again it was reciprocated and Hei couldn't help but notice that an honest smile looked better on the older man than a smug smirk.

"How did things go on your end?"

November crossed his arms in front of his chest and looked at the assassin expectantly. Said male only continued to smile and answered slowly in a low tone, not really wanting to reply, but knowing that if he didn't satisfy the Brit's curiosity, Jack was going to start investigating, which meant he was probably going to find out that someone had been killed brutally on the side of the town opposite to the one the blonde had been instructed to create a diversion, around the time where Shengshun had already freed Mei Ling and Yîng and that was the last thing the assassin needed.

For a moment he couldn't help but wonder when on earth everything had gotten that complicated, but he answered his own question, when he thought about how he had betrayed the syndicate.

"Thankfully everything went well. A friend of mine took her with him and they should be on their way out of the country right now."

November nodded, seemingly satisfied with the explanation, before he paused for a moment, giving the younger man a sharp look.

"I won't ask how on earth you got Mei Ling and her daughter out of the station, since I doubt that I'd get a good answer, but I hope you know that I'm curious."

Hei tensed when he heard that, but seeing the expression on the blonde's face, he sighed deeply and audibly and relaxed against the tree again.

"I know you want to know how I did it, but I don't like talking about it."

He sent November a pleading look and was surprised when the MI6 agent simply sighed, unconsciously mimicking the assassin – Hei couldn't help but think that both of them had been sighing too much lately, but with all these unexpected and dangerous situations, what else were they supposed to do but sigh and bear with it?

"I already said that I wouldn't ask, but," the Brit sent the younger one an almost soft smile, "you are welcome to tell me about it any time."

Relief flooded through him, and Hei couldn't really tell why he felt almost happy at the blonde's statement, as the two of them fell into a companionable silence.

* * *

Almost amused November watched as Shengshun slowly closed his eyes, obviously tired and mentally drained as the rest of the tension that had obviously been plaguing the younger one drained away.

He was impressed that the other blue eyed man had been able to pull everything off flawlessly and he wondered how he had gotten his sister-in-law and niece out of the police-station. Maybe the dark haired man had worked as a thief when he had lived on the streets when he had been a boy? That could be an explanation, but somehow he thought that it didn't really fit Shengshun.

Pushing that thought to the back of his mind, his eyes were drawn back to the younger man, as said other slowly pulled down the zipper of his jacket, apparently wanting to cool off.

Quietly he mustered the dark haired one, taking in his slightly ragged form, dusty and dirty from whatever had happened. He wasn't wearing his usual jeans and white button-down shirt and was instead clad in a pair of dark baggy pants with pockets on its sides, a dark grey jacket and – taking a closer look, November had to wonder whether Shengshun was wearing a shirt or not. It wasn't obvious, but he couldn't detect one and the younger male had opened his jacket pretty far, so it was probable that…

Abruptly the MI6 agent stopped his train of thought and uncrossed his arms, putting them on the back of the bench – at the moment he really didn't want to think about a shirtless Shengshun.

To distract himself, he continued his study of the younger one, ignoring the fact that that only served to make him think about it even more.

Transfixed he took in the dark haired man's exhausted face, the closed eyes, as he breathed evenly and deeply, almost as if asleep, when his gaze was suddenly drawn to the Chinese man's throat, as the object of his attention swallowed.  
Unable to stop them, Jack's eyes wandered from Li's face down to his throat following the graceful curve to his chest, taking in every little amount of skin that showed.

Slowly, cursing his eyes, November gazed at pale, silky skin, the slender throat, down until he stopped at the collarbones – the very sharp, wonderfully pronounced collarbones.

His mouth suddenly dry, the MI6 agent stared at them, starting beneath the throat arching slightly as they then vanished beneath the material of Shengshun's jacket, covered with snowy white, silken skin.

_Damn._

Glowering a little, he stood up suddenly, staring again when a pair of midnight blue coloured eyes, framed by long, dark lashes, was directed at him.

_He is really too good-looking for his own good. __And mine too._

He watched as the younger one slowly opened his mouth, obviously wanting to say something, but in a bout of irrational panic, he cut him off and trying to suppress the urge to cross the distance between them and reach out and touch the other's skin, to discover if it really was as soft as it looked.

"Well, I have to go now, or I won't be at home when Misaki calls me and April to tell us about the little fire I started. Not that she knows it was me, but you know what I mean."

He noticed that Shengshun looked startled at his abrupt words and departure, but at the moment he couldn't force himself to care, only wanting to get back to his cozy hotel-room and forgetting that he had ever thought about a shirtless Shengshun with wonderful collarbones and silky skin.

He raised his hand in farewell and forced his legs to move, leaving before the dark haired man could say something.

* * *

Rising his eyebrows Hei watched November's retreating back, wondering what had caused the older man's sudden departure.

He hadn't heard the blonde's cell-phone and there had been no signs of another person near them and even if there had been something like that, the Brit was too well-behaved to simply leave without saying a proper goodbye. For a moment the assassin continued to think about it, before his exhaustion caught up with him again and he decided it was time to go back to his flat.

_He probably remembered something urgent he had to do and whatever it is, it ha__s nothing to do with me._

Satisfied with his explanation Hei slowly stood and stretched, hearing several quiet cracks, before he started to make his way home.

A surprisingly cold gust of wind made him shiver and quickly the dark haired man closed his jacket again – he had cooled off enough and if he stayed any longer in the cold, only dressed in a halfway unzipped coat, there was no doubt in his mind that he would spend the next few days in bed.

Somehow Hei thought that he should feel satisfied that his niece was safe, that he had pulled everything off without a hitch (at least up until now) and that Mei Ling had finally gotten some of her due back, but the assassin just couldn't bring himself to feel happy.

He just felt tired and exhausted and he really only wanted to forget that the last few hours – had it really only been a few hours? – had ever happened.

* * *

Well, I hope you enjoyed it, despite it being short in some places. As always, if you find mistakes, please tell me and I'll fix them!

Yours,

TTF


	8. Chapter 8

A/N: Well, this is the new chapter, sorry for the long wait and the short chapter!

This is the beginning of a new arc and I hope you'll enjoy it! As always, if you find mistakes of any kind please tell me and I'll fix them.

* * *

When he had heard that he and Pai would have to work together with two other people in South America – two other Contractors – Hei had dreaded it.

He usually didn't get along with other people, he didn't trust them – couldn't trust them, really, least of all Contractors – and they either loathed and feared him, or looked down on him and thought he was inferior to them, depending on whether they were normal humans (as far as humans without powers who worked for the syndicate could be called 'normal') or not.

Because of that, it had surprised him that he got along with Amber and Carmine that easily.

He and the red-headed Contractor had had several differences and didn't really get along, but they respected each other. Carmine had accepted the fact that he was as cold-blooded as any Contractor and could back up his attitude with skill and Hei had admitted that, while her obeisance disgusted him, her powers made her dangerous and incredibly capable.

It was Amber though, that had surprised him. She had been… different.

Due to the dangerous nature of her contract she hadn't really been able to use her powers and, in a way, that had made them allies, since they both had had to fight and kill other people without the aid of extraordinary abilities, while both Pai and Carmine both used their powers as much as possible for them.

While she had at first been rather cold, she had quickly warmed up to him and sometimes they had had long talks into the night, ridiculing the colour-code-names the syndicate had given her and his other temporary team-mate, philosophising about the nature of their work, and many other things.

Hei had found that he could relate to the older woman in a way he had thought impossible since his older brother had betrayed him.

Because of that, he had done something he had vowed to never do again – he had trusted her.

He hadn't done it consciously, but one night, after a particularly vicious fight with another team of Contractors, he had thought back to it and remembered that he had trusted her to fight right beside him and that had made him realise that he trusted her not only with his safety, but also with his past and his thoughts.

Amber had been the only one he had enough faith in to tell her about what had happened to him and Pai in the past and she had accepted it with a quiet calm that had made Hei wonder just how old she really was.

Due to her contract, she could have been as old as his mother or even older than that – maybe as old as the grandmother he had never known – but she had never offered an answer and he had never asked.

She had told him other stories though – about her family, about the schools she had gone to and about how she had ended up working for the syndicate.

Now, years later, Hei had to wonder how much about what she had told him had been true and what had been a lie. The childish, hurt part of him wanted to say that she had lied to him all the time, but the more rational part told him that it was impossible to lie all the time and some nights, when they had sat close together and had talked quietly so as to not wake up Pai and Carmine, he thought that it was impossible for her to have faked the warm looks she used to give him.

But he didn't think he would ever know.

He didn't think he wanted to know.

She had betrayed him despite knowing his history.

She had taken away the last family-member he had.

She had taken away the girl he had given up his life for, the one he had loved more than anyone else.

He would never forgive her.

No matter what happened.

* * *

Staring down at the slim hand that held his wrist in a vice-grip, Hei wondered once again how on earth he always got himself into these kinds of situations.

He had been working as a bartender in a bar (he was investigating a rumour about the owner of it having gotten his hands on some kind of object from the gate), when he had run into April, or rather, April had seen him, waited until his shift had been over and then had proceeded to grab him and dragged him out to accompany her on one of her drinking-sprees.

Sighing slightly Hei made a mental note to avoid the exuberant woman when she felt the need to go out drinking, though it was a mystery to him anyway, why she felt the need to drag him with her, when they didn't really know each other.

Hearing her squeal in delight, the assassin winced, dreading what she was going to do, since she had dragged him through most bars in that part of the city – or at least it felt like it, since the dark haired man couldn't help but feel a little dizzy due to the alcohol April had made him drink. Hei had a high tolerance for it, but after not sleeping the night beforehand and neglecting to eat dinner he had started to feel its effect soon after drinking something.

Raising his head to take a look at what had gotten the dark skinned woman that excited and stopped dead in his tracks when he realised what it was.

"April-san, I'm not going into a host-club."

The MI6 agent turned around and gave him an annoyed look before tugging at his hand.

"Oh, come on Sheng-chan!" Hei twitched slightly at the name April gave him, wondering why on earth she was using suffixes when it was obvious that she wasn't Japanese. "I really want to go to one of those – I've never been in one before, besides," she smirked, "I want to take pictures of you with a few young men to make Jack jealous."

Stunned the assassin stared at her, disbelief at her bold and very, very, _very_ strange answer.

"You want to do _what?!"_ Before he could regain his composure, she dragged him into the building, making him stumble after her and for a moment Hei closed his eyes, wishing the floor would open up beneath him.

Opening them again, he noticed that there were several people staring at him and that gave him the inventive to jerk his hand away from the evil woman holding him hostage and he started to back away, wanting to get out of the building as fast as possible.

Unfortunately April grabbed him arm again – this time with more force – and started to whine, her voice echoing throughout the whole room.

"No way Sheng-chan! You promised to go drinking with me, didn't you?" Annoyed he tried to get his arm out of her grip, only giving up when it was apparent that she wasn't going to let go, no matter what.

"First, I didn't promise you anything, you just decided to drag me along and, second, I thought that we'd go to a bar, I didn't know you were dragging me to a host-club!"

Exasperation was clearly visible on his face, while Hei felt a familiar pounding in his temples, announcing the arrival of a headache and he couldn't help but feel cranky.

He had thought that after his shift was over, he could go to sleep – he hadn't been expecting a walk through the whole city, where the dark skinned woman pulled him into bars, only to leave quickly if something wasn't to her liking. This meant that they had been in and out of a bar in the matter of ten to fifteen minutes, causing Hei to feel even more tired that he already was.

April tried to persuade him with a look that was probably supposed to be a pleading look, but it failed completely because of the sunglasses she wore and the small smirk on her face, making it obvious to him that she was simply out to tease him.

The assassin sighed deeply and wondered what on earth he had done to make him deserve this.

He didn't have to think very long, since his job made it obvious – he was an assassin, he killed people. That was more than enough to get bad karma.

_I wonder what I'll be reborn as in my next life…_

Sighing again the dark haired man was surprised when he felt a hand on his shoulder. It seemed that their quite loud comments had relaxed the curious atmosphere that had made the place uncomfortable before and people that had glared at them before had started to turn their attention away, seemingly satisfied with the explanation they got.

Having taken that in, Hei turned his own attention to the man that was touching him. He was handsome as far as looks went – tall, broad shouldered, dark hair and eyes, a welcoming smile and open body language – but the assassin disliked him as soon as he saw the amusement on the other man's face and the arrogance hidden in the depths of his eyes.

Making sure to look as naïve and friendly as possible in such a situation, he turned a little so that the hand on his shoulders fell away he tilted his head slightly while giving the man a quizzical look.

"If you don't want your friend to be disappointed, you should stay here, I guarantee that none of us will bite and I'll even take you as customers."

Hei could feel his eyebrow twitch at both the comment and the giant smile on the man's face and he felt the urge to break a few of these pearly white teeth that were glaring at him.

The assassin returned the smile with a blinding one of his own – surprising both April and the man – before he answered in a soft and gentle voice.

"I appreciate your offer, thank you," Hei had to fight to keep his expression as it was when he saw the triumph in the man's eyes, "but I have to decline, I apologize."

This time it was him dragging April out of the room, who had been watching the scene with a stunned look on her face and her mouth wide open.

Again outside in the cool air, the dark haired Contractor let go of the MI6 agent's hand, while starting to walk away from the club. He was relieved to be out of that place and he swore that he'd never set a foot into this alley again, not even when he was hunted down by twenty Contractors and it was the only way to escape them.

The assassin's eyes widened before he sighed again – he had probably jinxed himself with that thought.

Loud laughter startled him and he turned around to find April leaning against a wall, trying not to fall over as she laughed and laughed, barely stopping for breath. Once again the assassin couldn't help but be amazed by the time the woman could spend without breathing – if she ever developed an interest in it, she could be one of the best divers the world ever saw. Unfortunately for Hei's nerves and his 'uncharacteristically' volatile temper and fading sanity, there was little chance that she would one day decide to quit her job with the MI6 and go to a faraway place to be a diver.

The assassin leant against a wall, deciding that it would probably take a while for her to recover he settled himself in for a wait.

* * *

"It was incredible how you sent him packing while he looked at you like he wanted to eat you!"

April grinned broadly while Hei shot her an odd look.

_Like he wanted to eat me? No, wait, I don't want to know._

Deciding to write it off as another one of her strange reactions – for the sake of his own sanity – the assassin shook his head slightly while he shrugged.

"I didn't do anything, I just declined his offer. What was so great about it?"

He plastered a clueless look on his face as he smirked inwardly, remembering the stunned look on the man's face as he was taken down a notch.

_That should teach him not to be arrogant._

His comment made April grin and she poked his side with one of her fingers and the assassin backed away from her, fearing that it wouldn't stay by that were he to give her an opening.

"Oh, come on, surely you noticed the way he looked at you! He looked as if someone had told him that he was a three-eyed bug after you told him that you didn't want to stay!"

Rolling his eyes and deciding to ignore her comments Hei gave her a brief and exhausted smile before he said goodbye.

It was already light outside and he really needed to go to sleep if he wanted to be able to function that night. Behind him he could hear April mutter something that sounded suspiciously like 'spoil-sport', before he heard her call a goodbye, causing him to smile in relief. The MI6 agent wasn't a bad person, but her exuberance made it difficult for him to be in her presence for such a long time without wanting hurting someone (preferably her).

Hei put his hands into the pockets of his jeans, starting slightly when he felt something that shouldn't be in them. It was a set of keys that April had shoved at him while she had been looking for her wallet in her purse several bars ago and he had instinctively pocketed it.

Cursing under his breath the assassin turned around and ran into the direction he had just come from, hoping that the dark skinned Contractor hadn't gotten far yet, but just in case he increased his speed to BK201-quality – he really didn't want to be woken up from his much-needed sleep just because April wanted her keys when she discovered that she couldn't get into her apartment.

It took him several streets, but a few minutes later he noticed her running in front of him into the direction of a black car that was just leaving and again Hei cursed, wondering what on earth had convinced the usually lazy woman to sprint down the road as if her life depended on it.

A moment after she got into the car he finally caught up with her, breathing heavily as he knocked against the window just behind the driver of the cab, ignoring the fact that he was standing in the middle of the street.

The MI6 agent stared at him surprised before she crawled over to the window and opened it.

"What are you doing here Shengshun, you already left!"

Her reaction told him that she had probably gotten an order and was in a hurry – the cell-phone in her hand was a giveaway, so he should probably hurry up with this.

"I just want to return your keys." He smiled at her, but he was surprised when she grabbed his arm, making him lose his grip on the metal and they fell to the floor.

"Listen Shengshun, I have to go, I'm in a hurry."

Hei arched an eyebrow as he crouched down to retrieve the keys – the urgency in her voice was surprising for his considering that she was never serious, not even when she helped November kill someone.

Still crouching on the floor he looked up and wanted to say something, but an unbearably loud sound prevented him from doing so.

Sharp pain shot through his body like lightning and that was all he remembered before his vision turned dark.

* * *

This is not the best thing I've ever written (it's short and strange), but I hope you could enjoy it a little anyway.

Yours,

TTF


	9. Chapter 9

A/N: So, yeah, you're probably already sick of my apologies for the late update, so, know that I'm really sorry and let's leave it at that? Erm... please?

cough anyway, this is the new chapter and I hope you enjoy it after the cliffhanger last time and if you don't, I'm always up for critique!

Well, if you find mistakes just tell me and I'll fix them, so now after this, I'll let you read in peace.

* * *

November 11 enjoyed showers, especially when they weren't interrupted by a dark skinned woman, who relished his embarrassment.

He also liked showering because he always had the feeling that all the stress and baggage that he carried during the day would simply wash away, leaving him relaxed and calm and ready to deal with anything that life threw at him.

It was because of this, that, when he finally stepped out of the bathroom and went to his bedroom to get dressed, he didn't think that anything could ruin the wonderful mood he was in – what had someone called it once? Oh, yes, being in a peaceful state of mind.

Unfortunately, November 11 was dead wrong.

There were quite many things that could let his day go to hell – as he was about to find out when he picked up his cell-phone from the table and checked his voice-mail.

* * *

_You have one saved __message._

-Peep-

"_This is April. I've found February, our top priority. She's being accompanied by a Caucasian boy with heterochromatic eyes."_

"_Where to?"_

"_Follow-"_

Knock, knock, knock.

"_What the-?_

_What are you doing here Shengshun, you already left!"_

"_I just want to return your keys."_

Clack.

"_Listen Shengshun, I have to go, I'm in a hurry."_

CRASH.

BOOM.

_Peep, peep, peep._

_4:04 A.M. End of messages._

* * *

For a moment November stood perfectly still, like a well-made statue or maybe like he had frozen himself with his powers, but it was only for a moment.

As soon as the shock lessened he was hit by a wave of dread, that forced him to lean against a wall to steady himself lest his legs gave out beneath him.

Jack felt as though he had been punched several times and then been forced to put his head under water as he realised just what had been recorded on his phone.

The Brit took several deep breaths before he straightened again and quickly dialled a number he had memorised after the many times he had called it.

To his relief the other picked up after the first ring.

"Misaki, here is November, I just got a call…"

The MI6 agent quickly explained everything to the younger woman and she immediately ordered someone of her section to inquire about the location of the victims of the explosion that had happened in the morning.

Ten minutes later the blonde had the information he wanted and then he looked for July (he found him in a kitchen to his surprise – and he was staring at a glass of water?) and quickly dragged him out of the apartment and the hotel, wanting to get to his team-mate and his acquaintance as soon as possible.

* * *

Silently November stared at the prone figure lying on the bed, the white sheets making him seem painfully frail and accentuating the dark bruises and cuts on the dark-haired man's face.

As soon as he had found out where April was, he had bullied the nurses and doctors until they had finally given up and told him about his team-mate's condition.

She was still in surgery and until it was finished there was nothing they could say about whether she would live through her injuries or not – which was the exact opposite from what he wanted to hear, but it was probably immature to think that in the end everyone of the good guys would still be up and walking.

Gods, he hoped that she was going to be alright.

Afterwards he had called his superiors and told them that February was in the country and that April was heavily injured, maybe even fatally – November was glad that he had sent July off to play with someone (or something) or other. There really was no reason to upset the boy – though the Brit wasn't even really sure whether the Doll was capable of feeling upset.

When he had finished that task he had inquired about Shengshun's location and condition which was considerably better than April's.

The Chinese man had a slight head-injury, several cracked and bruised ribs, heavy burns on his legs and uncountable bruises and cuts – the young man had been lucky that he had been kneeling on the floor, as the cab had prevented him from getting any life-threatening wounds, acting like a cushion between the explosion and him.

Still, the twenty-something years old hadn't regained conscious yet and November couldn't help but resent the fact that the one he had started to like as a friend (and just a friend he told himself) was chained to a hospital-bed in such a manner.

And he felt guilty as well. Ever since their little escapade of helping a wanted Contractor out of the country (even if the Contractor was an innocent girl and the ones after her a blood-thirst mafia-like syndicate that wanted to exploit her power), they hadn't talked to each other at all – November even got to the point where he actively avoided the younger man, afraid to face him after his reaction to the dark haired male in the park many nights ago.

He had let his fear get the better of him, something he had sworn to himself he would never do after watching uncountable normal humans destroy themselves with their emotions.

_Well, so much for that promise._ He thought dryly, again marvelling at the many emotions he could feel within himself since he had met Shengshun. These feelings were annoying most of the time, but sometimes, after something good happened and he could feel the unbridled, irrational joy stealing his breath away, when he felt that unbelievably _alive_, it was worth the usual annoyance.

It was sad that these occurrences where rare and he had the feeling that they were going to be even rarer in the weeks to come, what with April being out of commission (maybe even out of life) and February in the city.

The Brit wondered just what on earth the woman he had once known to be the MI6's top agent, was up to, but no matter what it was, November doubted that it was anything good. It couldn't be anything good after she had put Shengshun and April into the hospital and he was going to make sure that she wouldn't get the chance to do that again.

Tiredly the blonde let his eyes wander over the dark haired man's face, then the arms that were heavily bandaged any lying on top of the blanket covering him, over the hidden torso and down to the legs.

Again he was amazed just how frail the younger man looked – almost like he was gong to break apart any second – and it definitely wasn't a good feeling, when he compared it to the delicate impression he had gotten while holding the Chinese male's hand in the police-station's infirmary.

November knew that it was a ridiculous thought, that humans didn't just break (or at least they didn't without being subjected to his own power or other abilities) and he knew that normally Shengshun didn't give off the impression of being delicate or frail – with his lean and thin but muscled physique he was obviously in physical top-form – but in a hospital-bed everything seemed different.

The blonde sighed deeply as he buried his face in his hands, wondering just when he had started to be that protective of the younger one, not sure if he wanted to have an answer or not.

His eyes still on the dark haired man, the Brit slowly took one of his hands away from his face and moved it to the still form in the bed.

Gently, incredibly gently, he took one of Shengshun's hands into his own, marvelling how, even hurt and unconscious, the hard calluses on the palm and fingers and the soft skin on the back of his hand managed to calm him down a little, relishing the contact that assured him that the younger one was solid and warm, dispelling his fears of seeing the Chinese man break apart.

After some time he started to grip it tighter, November's eyes never leaving the face of his injured acquaintance-friend-something as he willed him to wake up.

Having April in a bad condition was bad enough, but seeing the one who had managed to manipulate him into doing his bidding that weak and vulnerable was something that shook him and made him thirst for blood.

That impulse genuinely surprised the Brit, since he had never seen himself as someone to give in to simple impulses, but when he thought about it November really couldn't say whether he would be able to hold himself back from killing February or not – despite the history the two blondes shared.

A quiet knock on the door ripped him from his rather dark thoughts (if you consider disembowelling someone with a spoon as 'dark') and the MI6 agent raised his head only to find a nurse standing in the doorway and the woman motioned him to follow her.

Usually November would be tempted to flirt with her, but after seeing Shengshun in such a condition he knew that he wouldn't be able to stomach that at the moment – to his surprise that thought didn't bother him even half as much as he thought it would.

Soon he stood at the same door he had visited an hour ago and as far as he could tell they were operating a different part now. Forcing himself to ignore the scene in the other room he turned to look at his superior and almost-friend Decade, just wanting to get the whole interview/information-giving part out of the way so he could pester the nurses and doctors again so they would tell him about April's condition and then go back to Shengshun's room again – somehow he felt uncomfortable with leaving the younger man out of his sight. Who knew in what kind of trouble he could get into when there was nobody to have an eye on him – and yes, November knew that it was a completely irrational thought, but maybe the dark haired one would be kidnapped and sold into slavery or something like that.

And yes, November knew that it was an incredibly irrational and unlikely scenario, but considering Shengshun's luck – or rather his lack of it – really anything could happen.

Sighing inwardly he finally answered Decade's question of whether February was in Tokyo or not – or rather, he let the message on his cell-phone speak for itself.

As he vaguely hear the voices coming from the speaker of his phone, he again felt a cold fury well up inside of him, similar to his powers as a Contractor and he couldn't help but close his eyes as he listened to the loud sound of the explosion that had put both April and Shengshun into the state they were both in.

As November opened them again he noticed that Decade was watching April with an unreadable expression on his face that seemed quite suspicious to the blonde man, though he couldn't really say why. That expression just reminded him of what Mei Ling had said to him once – I seemed almost… content, though with a dose of anger and fear thrown in. It was as if the older man was satisfied that the dark-skinned woman had been injured that badly and afraid and angry because February had shown up.

_Their people are everywhere, in every organisation that's worth mentioning. The CIA, __**the British MI**__-_

The blue eyed man suppressed the frown that wanted to show itself on his face as he watched the strange expression vanish beneath a face of concern and friendliness.

It wasn't the first time that November had noticed something like this, but only now did he connect these occurrences with what Shengshun's sister-in-law had said and he didn't like what it implied.

He knew that he shouldn't jump to conclusions, but somehow it explained quite a few things that he had previously written off as coincidences.

But he shouldn't think about that now, since Decade was standing in front of him and glaring at the man as if he was responsible for April and Shengshun's injuries was something that would harm November's relationship with the older one and, if the bald man really had connections with the syndicate that the Contractor hunted, the younger Brit would have to keep their relationship as friendly as possible – maybe he would be able to either confirm or dismiss his suspicions.

"Let's go up to the roof, we'll have more privacy there. I want to talk to you about what to do next."

Jack nodded at Decade and both of them made their way up to the normally closed off roof – opening the locked door was easy for the two MI6 members and they, together with July, made themselves comfortable.

The small boy that had tagged along settled himself down on one of the benches that were usually used for patients that had gotten permission to visit the roof (with the supervision of a nurse), while both men stood a little distance away and leaned against the high fence that surrounded the open space, thus preventing anyone from falling down the high building and killing themselves in the process.

The course of their conversation was nothing unexpected to November, though the younger one felt like laughing at the older Brit, when he heard how February was described as a 'maid'.

Decade made her seem like a small child that had made an insignificant mistake and had to be punished a little – not like the cunning professional soldier that had deliberately and single-handedly destroyed one of the most lucrative and most important sections of the MI6 and in the process had thrown the whole organisation into chaos.

November really wondered if the way she was underestimated showed what Decades opinion of Contractors really was – if the older one thought that they weren't insidious killing machines, but instead selfish, stupid little children that were easily manipulated and punished to their superior's convenience.

Whatever it was, what the man thought, he was in for a rude awakening, because, no matter how much he loathed February for injuring both his team-mate and his… well, 'partner-in-crime' would fit best for Shengshun, she knew what she was doing and she always got what she wanted.

He knew that best, after all she had been his mentor many years ago when he had just started to work for the MI6.

But now wasn't the right time to brood over the woman he had once considered to be his surrogate-sister/surrogate-mother (he had never found out just how old she actually was, though not because of a lack of effort on his part) and the way she had betrayed both him and the organisation they worked for.

November's and Decade's conversation was drawing to a close, when suddenly the door leading to the roof was violently thrown open and a nurse quickly made her way towards him.

She was panting and could barely talk and Jack dreaded whatever she was trying to say.

There were only two reasons that could cause someone in a hospital to run – the first one was that something good had happened. A baby had been born, a man who had been in a coma for twenty years had finally woken up, etc.

In November's line of work people usually got the second kind of reason however: something bad had happened/was happening/was going to happen and someone had to fix the screw up that had happened.

She didn't even glance at Decade and July and just focused on him as she forced words out of her mouth that made the blood in November's veins freeze and for a moment the Brit wondered if he had lost control of his power as he felt the icy coldness that had transformed his blood into ice-cubes.

"Mr. Li… in room… 102… started to wake up… trashes around… could rip his stitches… need you… to come with me… calm him down…"

She only looked at him for a moment to see if he had understood what she had been saying and then she turned on her heal and started to run again, obviously taking 'no' not for an answer.

It was good then that the MI6 agent had no intentions of denying her request and so he followed her, breaking into a run and leaving the already exhausted nurse behind him wanting to get to the room he had left just half an hour before as soon as possible.

It took him some time to reach it, and he had almost barrelled into a dozen people on his way there, but when he arrived he quickly entered the room and froze as he took in what was happening, panting from the run.

A male nurse was trying to hold Shengshun down, who writhed on the bed, obviously in pain as he tried to claw at the bandaged covering his arms, before trying to claw out the nurse's eyes, while another one was standing at the foot of the bed, filling up a syringe with something November assumed to be a sedative.

The IV had long since been ripped out of the dark haired male's arm and it was only by a wonder that the rest of the medical instruments connected to his body were still where they were supposed to be and working properly.

After taking in the scene and the Chinese man's soft pained sounds that sometimes turned into a hoarse scream, November quickly walked to the bed and shoved the nurse that tried to hold the blue eyed man down out of his way.

The man gave a surprised shout, but he ignored him in favour of leaning over Shengshun's trashing form and pinning the younger one's arms down to the bed, repeatedly calling his name.

While the Chinese man's upper body was now forced to stay still, his legs were still active and November heard a pained yelp behind him as one of the nurses that tried to help was kicked.

Again the blonde called the other one's name, this time louder and he also shook him a little, trying to gain the dark haired male's attention and finally succeeding as a pair of glazed dark blue eyes settled on his face and the trashing stopped for a moment.

Or so the Brit thought.

A few seconds later Shengshun started to writhe again, but this time he also opened his mouth and started to scream hoarse phrases in Mandarin that November didn't understand and in between these phrases he screamed something that Jack assumed were names.

"_Carmine!"_

"_Pai!"_

"_**Amber!"**_

The MI6 agent was stunned by the fury and the incredible hurt in these names, though the last one was the worst as Shengshun opened his eyes wide, staring at the blonde with betrayal and loathing written clearly on his face, as if the older Contractor had committed an abominable crime that could never be forgiven.

Just after the name had been called everything went still before the dark haired man's eyes slowly started to slip closed.

One of the nurses had injected him with a sedative, but that wasn't what November thought about.

Just before these midnight sky coloured eyes had closed, the expression in them had changed drastically – instead of betrayal and hatred they had reflected a deep hurt and a silent plea.

The blonde Contractor could almost hear the question that Shengshun had obviously tried to ask.

_Why?_

That look had completely stunned the Brit and it was only when the nurse that had injected the dark haired man with the sedative cleared her throat, that he realised that he should get off the younger man and let the women check if everything was alright with their patient.

Slowly he released Shengshun's arms, painfully aware that the younger man would probably have hand-shaped bruises on them the next day, before he stepped away from the bed, his place immediately taken by the male nurse he had shoved out of his way.

The MI6 agent watched as the two others in the room busted and hurried around, hastily making sure that everything was as it was supposed to be.

The blonde felt somewhat disconnected from everything, though he wasn't sure why he felt that way – somehow he thought that it had something to do with what had just happened.

It was only after the nurses had left, nodding at him as they walked out of the room, that he recognised just what caused the fog in his mind – it really wasn't surprising that he had needed that long to recognise what it was, after all it had been over ten years that he had last felt that way.

It was rage.

It was pure, unadulterated rage and he was shaking because he refused to let it out in the hospital room where Shengshun was lying injured.

In that instant he knew that, when he met February – and it was _when_, not _if_, because he would hunt her down even if it was the last thing he ever did – she was going to pay for involving someone unrelated to what was happening in her scheme.

The dark haired man had a relative that was a Contractor, yes, and his sister-in-law had once been a passive member of the syndicate November hunted, and he had seen a Contractor when he had been a child, but in the end the younger man had no idea what was really going on and he had no idea about Contractors and Dolls and what they could do to humans without powers – and November didn't want him to find out.

The Brit knew that Shengshun wasn't nearly as naïve as he pretended to be, but in this case the blonde knew that the other was oblivious and February didn't have the right to change that, no matter who she had been to him once.

Mento or not, surrogate sister or not, surrogate mother or not, best agent the MI6 had ever seen or not, he was going to make sure that whatever pain Shengshun ('And don't forget April' a quiet voice told him) felt, whether it be physical or mental pain, would be paid back in full coin.

The MI6 agent took several deep breaths and in an incredible example of control he forced his muscles to relax and the dark fury that prevented him from thinking clearly down into a distant corner of his mind. He didn't want it to vanish before he could take it out on the blonde woman that was responsible for Shengshun's condition.

While the dark haired man's physical condition was easily healed, it was his mental one that November was worried about.

Somehow either the pain of the injuries the younger man had gotten in the explosion, or the situation in and of itself had caused him to remember something incredibly painful as it seemed and the Brit didn't know what he should do when Shengshun was awake and coherent again. He didn't know what to say to him when he had witnessed something as private as the expressions and feelings that the dark haired male had revealed that day.

Taking another deep breath he took one last look at the now still figure in the bed and left the room, his lips pressed into a tight line.

* * *

Slowly Hei could feel his awareness return to him, though he was still caught in the strange place between dreaming and waking where you knew that you were still asleep and now had to decide whether to keep sleeping, or to wake up.

Hei being Hei and thus a paranoid Contractor that worked as an assassin for a dangerous syndicate decided to wake up and so his awareness returned completely, though he didn't open his eyes immediately.

Instead he lay there for some time, taking in his surroundings without the use of his eyes.

The room he was in smelled of disinfectant and illness and he instantly knew that he was in a hospital.

The noise of the machines gave it away quite clearly and after making sure that there was no-one but him in the room (he didn't hear anyone breathing), he slowly opened his eyes, mindful that, if the lights in the room were lit, they could induce a giant headache.

He was lucky, since none of the lights were lit and the curtains were drawn, though the door that led to the corridor was opened a little, letting in a thin crack of light.

Hei looked around once again, before he closed his eyes again, now trying to evaluate the state his body was in – and what had happened that had caused him to be in a hospital?

From what the assassin could remember, he had been dragged into one bar after another by April and after they had parted ways, he had found out that he still had her keys, so he had turned around and followed her catching her just as she had wanted to drive away in a cab.

But what had happened then?

He had dropped the keys, Hei remembered, then he had knelt down to pick them up, he had heard a loud noise and then…

What had happened then?

The assassin frowned a little as he tried to remember, but he always stopped at that noise.

After a few seconds of thinking about it, his eyes snapped open as he realised just what that noise had been. Hei really didn't know why he had needed such a long time to realise it, when he had heard more than enough explosions in his life, but he supposed it was because this explosion had sounded a little… different.

Most people didn't know it, but every explosion had their own kind of noise, depending what had caused it.

C-4, dynamite, oxyliquits, Sprengel explosives, any kind of explosions caused by Contractors – they all sounded a little different and Hei, after hearing a lot of them, had learned to distinguish between them.

Despite his extensive knowledge of sounds of explosions however, he had never heard this sound, which meant that it had probably been caused by a Contractor.

The syndicate member groaned inwardly as he close his eyes again.

What had he gotten into this time? He had rotten luck where it concerned Contractors with the power to explode things (which, to Hei's chagrin, was one of the more popular powers around) – on just had to take a look at how the mission where he had fought with VI952 had went.

He hadn't been able to use his injured arm for some time, which had caused Mao to tease him ("Is the great Black Reaper losing his touch?"), Huang to yell at him ("Do you HAVE to get hurt NOW you IDIOT? WHAT IF THE SYNDICATE SENDS US ON A MISSION AND YOU SCREW UP BECAUSE YOU'RE INJURED?") and Ying to follow him for some time ("…").

Hei really didn't want a repeat of that, but, considering he was now in a hospital bed and probably injured quite badly – if the pain in his body was anything to go by – it was a little too late to hope for that.

Sighing a little and wincing when his chest hurt because of it, the assassin finally concentrated on his wounds, already dreading having to tell his team-mates that he was hurt like that.

It hurt to breathe and it had hurt him to sigh, so Hei assumed that his ribs were either cracked or broken, though, after gently running his fingers over his ribcage and pressing down slightly – while hissing at the pain in his chest – he decided that they weren't broken.

Another thing that was practically impossible to ignore was the pain in his legs – they felt as if someone had decided to grill them for dinner and then forgotten to eat them. It was a strange pain, that was hot, as if his legs were still being burned and it was something that could only have been caused by a fire – not surprising considering that Hei had been in an explosion.

The next thin he noticed was that his head was throbbing and he reached up, only to feel bandages wound around his head, confirming his suspicion that he had been injured there.

It was a wound, but the dark haired man didn't feel dizzy or dazed, his ears didn't ring and he could see quite clearly, so it probably wasn't a concussion. Other that that, there was only a slight pain that he could associate with bruises and cuts, but nothing serious.

What startled him though, were his arms. After moving them, he found that his upper arms were throbbing, both around the same place, which confused the assassin and made him wonder what had caused that pain – burns, bruises, cuts and broken bones could easily be explained by the explosion, but to have two symmetrical bruises on his arms that went all around them was strange.

After a moment of thinking about all of this, Hei had to suppress a bitter laugh – it was almost funny that he could evaluate his condition better that some doctors.

It wasn't so funny that he had had almost any injury possible that made such a thing possible for him.

The assassin was familiar with broken bones, concussions, burns, bruises, horrible gashes that made you fear that you would bleed to death, head wounds that weren't concussions, sprains, dislocated arms, legs, fingers – he had been subjected to practically every injury that wasn't fatal or crippling and in some cases several times. Somehow Hei felt that it was pretty pathetic.

It was a wonder that he had managed to survive in his circumstances and for a moment Hei wondered why he hadn't died yet, when his sole reason for living while working for the syndicate had vanished.

He had started to kill because he had had to protect Pai and he had always hated himself for stealing the lives of other people, even if those people were criminals or Contractors.

After the Heaven's Gate had vanished and his sister had vanished with it – together with Amber who had betrayed him – it had gotten a little easier, because now he could let loose all of his hate for Contractors that he had bottled up over the many years of watching them commit atrocities and crimes.

But he still hated it.

A sudden warmth on his hand startled him out of his thoughts and Hei cursed himself for losing himself in his thoughts – he could have been killed had it been someone hostile.

As it was though, the assassin had recognised November 11 when he had opened his eyes a little and so he was able to stay relaxed, knowing that the blonde held no ill-intentions towards him.

Hei paused in his thoughts as he wondered about the certainty of the thought and a shudder went through his body when he realised just what it could men.

_No, it's not true. I swore that I wouldn't ever trust someone again, so it has to be something else. It can't be that. It just can't._

Swallowing slightly and knowing he had given himself away with it, Hei slowly opened his eyes and turned his head a little to look at the Brit that was holding his hand.

There was a strange expression in Jack's eyes, one that the assassin had never seen before and it made him feel a little uneasy, but he shoved that feeling away, concentrating on the man before him.

"How are you feeling?"

November's voice was soft and his hold on Hei's hand was gentle and somehow the dark haired man felt comforted by it, though he knew that he should be unsettled by the thought that had come to him.

"I-" As he tried to answer the older man, his dry throat cause him to cough violently, shaking his whole body as he tried to curl onto one side to relief his body of the pressure in his chest, only jarring his wounds in the process, which caused him to cough even more.

Then he felt an arm curl around his shoulders and slowly he was lifted into a sitting position, his body still wracked with violent coughs.

Hei felt something cool and smooth on his lips and he reflexively opened his mouth, welcoming the cool liquid sliding down his throat, though he had to stop drinking for a moment, afraid to inhale some of the water.

Slowly the assassin forced himself to stop coughing – breathing shakily but evenly as his whole body trembled with the pressure of simply breathing.

Then he felt another arm wrap around his waist and the arm around his shoulders shifted a little as he was pulled against a warm chest.

He vaguely heard November talk, telling him to breathe and if Hei had been able to he would have snapped at the older one, asking him what the hell the Brit thought he was trying to do, but then he felt Jack deliberately breathe in deeply and out again and without thinking he mimicked the movement, slowly calming down as his coughs subsided.

* * *

When Shengshun had opened his eyes, November had been genuinely… pleased (not ecstatic, not happy, but… pleased, yes, just that) and while his anger was still in the back of his mind, he had simply concentrated on the younger one's midnight sky coloured eyes, relieved that this time they weren't glazed over, but clear and coherent.

That had changed when Shengshun had tried to answer his question and instead had had a coughing fit.

The way the dark haired man had desperately fought for breath had made his blood boil and it frustrated November that all he could do to help the other man was to help him sit up and giving him something to drink calming him down by helping him breathe.

As he held the slim, trembling body of his partner-in-crime in his arms Jack was painfully aware of their proximity and his mind flashed back to the night in the park, where he had noticed the attraction to the younger one the first time.

The blonde shoved that thought away though, since it wasn't really helpful to think of how beautiful Shengshun was, when he was trying to calm said man down.

Slowly he could feel the tremors and coughs lessen and November breathed a sigh of relief when he could feel the thin form in his arms relax against him.

It was then that he realised in just what a position they were in, though he doubted that the younger man was even aware of it – the dark haired one was pulled back against his chest, while November was sitting on the edge of the bed, both of his arms wrapped tightly around Shengshun's body.

This incident had shaken him, maybe even more than it had shaken the other man and he hated that he hadn't been able to do anything to really help the injured one – his wounds had to hurt even more now.

The sight of what had happened just now… Jack decided that he never wanted to see it again, so he pulled the dark haired man tighter against his chest, feeling the other one tense a little, before he relaxed again.

After some time he felt a calloused hand on one of his own and both simply sat in a comfortable silence, leaning against each other and feeling content.

* * *

Well, this is it for this chapter, I hope you liked it, though somehow I have the feeling that nothing really happens here...

Anyway, I hope I won't have to apologize for the time between updates next time!

Yours,

TTF


	10. Chapter 10

A/N: I guess you're probably already sick of me always apologizing for taking such a long time, so maybe I should start to apologize in advance...

Well, enjoy this new chapter to the best of your abilities, meaning, I hope you like it!

* * *

Amber took a deep breath as she sat down on one of the chairs in the hideout she had managed to procure for 'Evening Primrose'.

After all that planning and scheming that went into this plan, she was relieved that the first part of it went very well, with her and Maki safe and a member of the MI6 incapacitated.

It hadn't been planned that April would see them and it could complicate things a little, but considering that the dark skinned woman was now probably in the ICU in the hospital, there wasn't much she could do to hinder her plans.

The sound of a chair being moved caught her attention and Amber turned to smile at the small boy that now sat beside her. Maki's power was incredibly significant for what she had planned and though she felt bad about what would most probably happen to him, she didn't feel too bad about it.

It was for the greater good after all and the life of one Contractor – no matter how young he was – in exchange for the rest of the empowered population of earth was a small price to pay.

The boy was just finishing his cup of hot milk when Amagiri walked into the room, carrying a small portable TV, much to Amber's amusement.

When the red-headed man noticed the look she gave him, he just shrugged and told her that he wanted to know what the media made of the attack.

The blonde haired woman had to admit that the words of the other Contractor made her curious – it could be amusing to watch how people talked about conspiracy theories when they didn't really know what was going on.

In fact, several of her greatest schemes had been concocted while watching the news or some other 'informational'-program, where they talked about several theories that could explain incidents and discussed how corrupt the government was – which it was, but these people had no real way of knowing that.

Because of her curiosity Amber didn't stop Amagiri when he turned on the TV and turned to a program that was famous for it's up-to-date news and how they always interrupted their other shows because of these news-flashes.

The three Contractors – well, two, considering that Maki was completely uninterested in the whole thing – didn't have to wait long and, as the explosion had only happened an hour previously, that was quite an accomplishment.

"We apologize for interrupting the current program with a news-flash. Today at four o'clock in the morning a building…"

While listening to the list of victims inside the building and watching the pictures of said people cross the screen, the woman nodded satisfied – everything was going just as she had planned.

Or so Amber thought.

The next few words made her freeze up in shock as she stared at the picture of someone she never would have expected to see there.

"But also on the outside people were harmed by this explosion. Three people on the street were heavily injured – one cab-driver, one woman in the cab and a man standing outside of it. One of them died on the way to the hospital, while another is still fighting for their life – the last one, while badly injured, is out of danger. It is not known yet, who of those three people is dead and who is injured.

Due to the security cameras of the building on the other street-side, we were able to procure a video that shows how these people were injured. However, probably due to the explosion, most of it was destroyed."

Numb with horror Amber watched as the man she knew as Hei ran to the cab, knocking on the door and talking to April. She watched as something fell out of his hand and he knelt down to get it, just in time for the explosion to hit.

For a moment it felt as if she couldn't breathe.

_-heavily injured-_

_-died on the way to the hospital-_

_-fighting for their life-_

Without stopping to think about what she was doing – only Hei managed to get such a reaction from her, whether he did it consciously or not – Amber jumped to her feet and practically ran out of the room.

Just before she left it, she remembered to call back to Maki and Amagiri to put a temporary hold on their doings – they couldn't act rashly now.

She had to find out what had happened to her former team-mate and if she was questioned by the rest of Evening Primrose, she would just tell them that she had had to find out whether her plan was ruined or not.

They didn't need to know the truth.

* * *

Cold water ran down his arms as November 11 washed his face in one of the bathrooms near Shengshun's hospital-room.

He had stayed with the younger one until the dark haired man had fallen asleep again and only then had he dared to leave the room and call a nurse to check up on the injured bomb-victim.

Sighing deeply the MI6 agent dried his face and arms, hating the fact that it wasn't even noon yet, but two people important to him were incredibly hurt and he didn't know what could happen in the future.

But not only that, oh no, he had also discovered that he was slightly attracted to someone he had at best considered an acquaintance – something he really didn't need when he was going to hunt for February.

Shaking his head November decided that he was going to ignore this strange attraction as much as possible.

He was a Contractor after all, so how difficult could that be?

Nodding to reassure himself the blonde left the bathroom and as soon as he raised his gaze, looking down the corridor he was in, he stopped dead in his tracks when he saw a blonde girl wearing strange clothes walk around a corner, thus vanishing from his sight.

Immediately the MI6 agent ran down to the corner he had seen her at, his heart pounding in his chest when he realised that in was the hallway leading to several rooms, including the one Shengshun was lying in.

November turned the corner, but there was nobody there.

_Did I just imagine it?_

He was sure that he had seen February, only a lot younger than when he had last seen her, though that wasn't really surprising considering the price she had to pay for using her power.

Running one of his hands through his hair the blonde wondered if he had been thinking that much about his former co-worker that he had been seeing her when she wasn't even present, but he wasn't sure.

He usually had more faith in his own mind than that, but it seemed lately he had been getting unstable.

No wonder, really, with everything that was going on, but as a Contractor, as someone who was considered an emotionless killing-machine, it was bothersome.

November pressed his lips into a tight line as he finally moved down the corridor towards Shengshun's room.

Just as he wanted to enter, he heard a voice inside – the voice of a girl and it was frighteningly familiar.

Ignoring the voice that called his name, he quickly entered the room, but other than the occupant that should be there, there was nobody else present.

_Maybe I really am seeing things – and hearing things too…_

A hand on his shoulder caught his attention and November turned towards Decade, who was frowning at him, asking why he hadn't replied when his name was called.

The Contractor was tempted to tell the older man about his apparent delusions, but he stopped himself – it did nobody any good were he to let his superiors think that he was mentally unstable.

Instead he apologized with a smile and answered that he had been in thought and hadn't heard him. That answer apparently satisfied Decade and so the blonde asked the balding man what he wanted.

The other MI6 member was just about to answer when he caught sight of the still figure in the bed before them.

His eyes widened and a look of genuine surprise crossed his face and while it was gone as quickly as it had come, November had seen it and it made him suspicious as his gaze followed the other's line of sight to Shengshun.

"Is something the matter?"

The smile on the blue eyed man's face was guileless and his tone friendly, but November never would have expected the usually guarded man beside him to actually answer his question.

Thus he was genuinely surprised when Decade started to answer, only to abruptly stop himself.

"This man is-"

Realising that he had almost said something he shouldn't, the bearded man cleared his throat and changed the topic, but there was a strange glint in his eyes that made the blonde uneasy.

"Never mind, I just thought he was someone else. I was looking for you since I want you to look at the file that contains February's mission-reports and the information we have on the mission we sent February on, the mission that caused her to betray the MI6 when she infiltrated a crime-syndicate of both humans and Contractors. Maybe they'll help you a little."

The Contractor nodded, but he wasn't really listening to Decade anymore – ever since the other Contractor had deserted the MI6 he had wanted to take a look at the mission-reports, but he hadn't been able to get the clearance to do that.

Despite his inattention though, he did notice the look the older man gave Shengshun before he left to get the file and the blonde had to admit that he didn't like it. It unsettled him that his superior had been that surprised when he had seen the younger man and that last look...

November really didn't like the venom in it, almost-friend and boss or not.

Frowning he closed the door to the room and walked to the bed, settling down in one of the chairs standing there. April would laugh at him and then drag him drinking could she see him now – the blonde was sure that he had never frowned as much as in these last few hours.

Shaking that thought from his mind, he waited for Decade to return with the files.

* * *

A cell-phone rang several times before someone picked it up.

"What is it?"

"We have an excellent opportunity to keep both November 11 and Hei out of our way for some time."

"What do you mean?"

"I found out that the two of them met and are apparently quite close – of course that happened while they were using their aliases and Hei is probably trying to get information on the MI6's movements, but it is an opportunity for us."

"Explain."

"If I can give November 11 the real files we got from Amber – not the ones we fabricated – and the diary we found, he may start to suspect Hei's alias, which would keep him out of our way for the time being and Hei was injured in the explosion and is in no condition to investigate the recent happenings and, were November 11 to distract him, it would reduce the chance that he and Amber could meet."

Silence.

"It's a risky plan. What if November 11 finds out the reason of Amber's actions? He is no fool."

"That's true of course, but then it would be no problem to eliminate him, besides, he trusts me – or he trusts me as much as a Contractor can trust somebody."

Silence.

"You have my permission to go through with your plan and give November 11 the real files. Besides that, inform Huang that Hei is in the hospital."

"Yes, sir."

"Be aware that, should your plan fail, you will have to face the consequences – I won't tolerate failure."

"I understand."

Beep, beep, beep.

* * *

After half an hour November wondered if he should look for Decade, in case something had happened to delay the older man, but in the end he decided to stay put.

It was none of his business if something happened to the balding MI6 agent and it was probably nothing anyway.

Just as that thought had crossed his mind, the door to the room opened and in came the one November had just thought about, carrying an armful of folders that contained the information the blue eyed man wanted to have.

Decade put them down on the unused bed beside Shengshun's and with a small wave the older man retreated back into the hallway, quietly closing the door behind him.

November couldn't help but raise his eyebrows at the strange behaviour and again he had noticed the look Decade had sent Shengshun, but, while it made him suspicious, there was nothing he could really do about it, so November opened the first file and started to read.

First there were only the mission-basics – that she was sent to infiltrate the syndicate and what measures had been taken to make her mission successful.

It was only later that things got interesting and November was startled to discover that February had written a diary. It wasn't full of emotions and inner thoughts and whining about things, but rather she simply wrote what her impressions were of something.

The first few weren't really anything special, but then he finally came to the point where it was getting interesting.

* * *

_Hey diary – long time no see!_

_From now on you'll have to call me 'Amber', since that's going to be my new name._

_Why the new name? Well, that's because I've been 'adopted' into a new 'family' any they decided that my old one wasn't suitable for them._

_It took me some time to make sure everyone trusted me enough, but now I'm finally allowed into a team of four and we're going to South America, to the 'Gate-Wars' as they're called around here._

_Today I met my team-mates and I have to say that they're an interesting group – two other girls and a guy. One of the girls worked for the CIA once, or at least that's what the other girl told me (why am I calling them 'girls' and not 'women'? That's because they are girls. The CIA-girl is maybe nineteen or twenty and the other girl is about fifteen, which surprised me a lot actually. I knew that Contractors are recruited young, but that young?) To make everything easier to write, I'm simply going to call the CIA-girl 'Red' and the younger girl 'White'._

_The only male in the team is 'Black' and from what I could tell, he and White are siblings, he's two years older than her and the real shocker? He's human – completely, fully, ordinarily human. Well, maybe not ordinary, since he works for the syndicate and is apparently good enough to fight with Contractors, but it's still surprising that there's a person with no powers whatsoever on a team that is going to be sent into one of the most dangerous and Contractor infested areas on the face of earth._

_It really makes me wonder just why he is on the team and what he did to be._

_Well, that's it for today, the team is going to do a few team-exercises and then it's off to South America._

* * *

November stared after reading that entry, thinking to himself that the woman who had written these entries had maybe exaggerated her persona as an energetic woman a little bit too much to be credible, but it wasn't anything to really worry about now.

She had probably done that to keep people who may have the opportunity to read it, off-balance about her personality (though November doubted that February really gave anyone the opportunity to – she was too good and too paranoid to do that).

The moment the MI6 agent had read that her code-name was 'Amber', he had remembered the way Shengshun had screamed that name in anguish and betrayal and it took the blonde some time before he managed to get his bearings back.

It was probably just a coincidence that the younger man knew someone who was named Amber and after thinking about it for a little November put it off as nothing.

It wasn't an unusual name after all and he was sure that, were he to take a look into a phone-book, there would be several people with that name.

Satisfied with the excuse he looked at Shengshun again, maybe for the tenth time since he had started reading, which annoyed him quite a bit.

He was supposed to research February and not watch the younger man sleep, but it was difficult to simply look away when there was no danger of being caught staring by anyone.

Turning his thoughts back to the entry, November had to admit that he was quite startled by the ages of _Amber's_ team-mates.

It was unusual that people that young were sent to a battle-field, even if they were Contractors (and one of them wasn't one). The reason for this wasn't worry about their emotional development or something like that, but it was simply because the bodies of children and teenagers couldn't take as much abuse as was necessary for a war and most organisations, legal ones or not, preferred to let the children they could recruit grow and use them smartly when they were older instead of immediately sending them to the battle-front as cannon-fodder when they were still young.

It made November wonder just what the abilities of these children were that had made the syndicate think that they could handle such an environment. It was even more interesting because there was a human among them and from what February reported it was a teenager.

Intrigued the blonde started to read the next entry of the diary – he wanted to find out more about this.

A tiny voice in the back of his mind asked him why Decade hadn't given him this information when they had come to Japan to look for 'Amber' – it would have been useful then.

* * *

_Dear diary, it's been a while, hasn't it?_

_Since I last wrote in you a lot of things happened, so I guess I'll start at the beginning of what happened._

_After the team-exercises I told you about, we went to the area we were supposed to fight in for now and about a day after arriving there we got into our first fight._

_Do you remember when I told you that I was curious about Black and how I was curious about him?_

_Well, now I know why the syndicate put him in our team, other that White being there._

_He is ruthless._

_Now that I write this, I realise that it sounds very tame, so maybe I should elaborate a little. We were ambushed by six Contractors who were nearby (don't ask me why we couldn't have been put down in a more secure area that could have let us slowly go to the more dangerous zones) and we were separated – White fought alone against some guy, Red fought against one too, which left two for me and two for Black._

_White and Red were driven away from me and Black when one of them made something explode, but at least that allowed me to dispose of the two men attacking me – and then I saw it._

_It was incredible how Black made short work of the two Contractors, but what really shocked me was that he did it all without batting an eyelid. Hadn't I known better, I would have thought that he was one of us as he killed them._

_Due to my own contract I usually fight without my powers, but I wouldn't hesitate to use them should the need arise to do so, but Black doesn't have even that. I have to admit that I'm impressed._

_White and Red were okay by the way and it was even more surprising to find that the merciless killer I witnessed actually had a soft spot for his sister._

_Her remuneration is to sleep for a certain amount of time and he cradled her against him like she would break any second._

_Red did away with her opponent without using her power and I'm really curious about it._

_Well, that's all that really happened so I'll leave you for today._

* * *

Taking a deep breath November again stared at the paper lying in front of him. This entry had been as interesting as the last one, especially because it had focused on 'Black' and February's thoughts about him.

The MI6 agent knew from experience just how difficult it was to impress Amber, so it was startling that a seventeen-year-old boy had managed to do it in just one day.

It was easy to tell that the woman was intrigued by this boy and if it were one of the strange romance-novels he knew women sometimes read, she would have fallen in love with him, seen the error of her ways and then they would have eloped with that guys sister to see a happily ever after.

November had to snort at that thought.

Amber was way too professional to even think of such an idea, betrayal or not, she knew better that to do something like that. Contractors only cared about themselves and nobody else, much less a human – at this point November was blatantly ignoring the voice in the back of his mind that snorted at him before pointedly looking at Shengshun. _How is it possible for a voice to look at something?_ Or the voice he tried to blatantly ignore – so it was more probable that she was simply interested in the teen's fighting abilities.

Refusing to look at Shengshun again, November continued to read entries that focused more and more on Black and only a little on February's other team-mates.

* * *

_Hi again diary._

_This is another entry that's mostly about Black, but I can't help it, since he is a fascinating person._

_I've never met someone who has such a contradicting character that I sometimes wonder if he suffers from a split-personality._

_On one hand there's Black the assassin and on the other, there's White's brother._

_Today was another prime example of what I was to convey to you._

_We ambushed a small group of enemy Contractors and tried to get information from them – usually such a feat is quite easy, since most Contractors are only loyal to themselves and when tortured, they give away information quite easily._

_But this time it was different._

_It seems that those sending out these teams learned quickly that our kind aren't as loyal as they need to be, so they put a human on the team, who had all the information we needed, while the Contractors didn't know anything._

_It was annoying, but we killed them off and only kept the human alive, while we decided what to do. Don't get me wrong, I'm a Contractor myself, I couldn't care less if we tortured that guy, but since I've never really tortured anyone, I didn't know where to start._

_Black took that decision out of my hands though, much to my surprise. If anything, I would have thought that Red or White would start with it, since they are like me, but instead the human of our group did our job._

_And believe me when I say that it was frightening, even for me._

_I'm not squeamish in the least, as many of my colleagues know, but happened there made my stomach give a flip._

_The man we captured was formidable and incredibly loyal to the organisation he fought for – he didn't give an inch, even when Black broke one rib after another, but when our team-mate started to cut off toes and fingers, even he started to waver, but he still didn't give us the information we wanted._

_When Black started to peel of his skin he started to talk, but most of it was begging for it to stop – pleas that Black completely ignored._

_As a Contractor I have complete control over myself, but when I looked at Black then I felt fear for the first time in a long while._

_There was no expression on his face, as if he didn't even register the fact that a man was screaming and sobbing because he was torturing him – but that wasn't the worst thing._

_The worst thing was that his eyes were dead._

_There was no light in them and it was like looking into the eyes of a corpse – and I know that I wasn't the only one who was bothered by this, because after taking a look at Black, the man started to curse at him for being such an 'unfeeling monster' and it was clear that he thought that Black was a Contractor._

_When Black told him that he was a normal human, I think something in our captive broke, since he lost complete control of himself, writhing and trying to attack us._

_In one movement Black threw him on the floor again and started to stab him in strategic places that would hurt our reluctant informant, but not kill him._

_It went on and on like this until we finally got the information we needed and we could dispose of the- well, after Black was finished with him, it's not possible to call him 'man' or even 'human' anymore, since he was really nothing more that a clump of flesh that cold talk._

_Afterwards Black went to a nearby lake and washed off all the blood on his weapons and on himself, looking completely unbothered._

_That was Black the assassin – a frightening, brutal and ruthless man, incapable of feeling emotion and colder than any Contractor that I've ever met._

_But then there's another side to him: Black, White's brother._

_Whenever they are separated on the battlefield Black gets frantic, desperately looking for her and only relaxing a little when he finds her safe and sound._

_He is the one that always holds her close when she pays off her contract and he does everything in his power to protect her, even though she is one of the most formidable Contractors I've ever met. When she is injured, he mothers her, taking over her duties and telling her to rest, always keeping an eye out for danger._

_That is White's brother – caring, kind, not exactly emotional, but so human that it sometimes hurts to look at him, when he cradles White against his chest, like a parent would their child._

_It's fascinating and I know that I'm not the only one to think so. Red is always watching him too, but the two of them don't really get along._

_But heaven help the one who tries to attack them when they are fighting back to back – when they work together, they can be compared to a hurricane._

_Nothing but destruction is left in their wake._

_It's an awe-inspiring display of skill and power, but were I to tell them that, I would be glared at, since they don't like to be complimented for their team-work._

_This is a never-ending well of amusement for both me and White._

_I befriended her recently – at first to find out more about Black, but when I noticed that she didn't want to tell me anything, I started to talk to her just for the heck of it, since Black is about as sociable as a rock and Red is practically never around when there's no mission._

_I really don't want to know what she is doing when she is alone, since I sometimes get the feeling that it involves small defenceless animals and a bunch of throwing-knives._

_Well, I guess that's it for today, since it's my turn to make dinner._

* * *

After reading this entry November decided that February was right – Back was interesting and the blonde wondered just what kind of person the human really was.

Meeting him would probably be very interesting, since there weren't many people who were that… extraordinary – if you put it nicely.

But he didn't even know if Black was still alive, since the chance that he survived the destruction of the Gate was minimal. It would also be interesting to know whether he had managed to live in society after doing things like torturing that man, or not, but, if Black really was as cracked as February had described him, it was doubtful.

Another thing that hadn't escaped the MI6 agent's notice was the fact that Amber had stopped calling Black a 'boy' – she now described him as a 'man' which made him wonder how their relationship would progress.

So he continued to read entry after entry, all of them getting more and more emotional, unstable and strange.

* * *

_Dear diary,_

_let me tell you that today is not a good day._

_I know that I probably shouldn't think that way, but I can't help it. Today I realised something that unsettles me quite a bit and it's frustrating too._

_I'm jealous._

_I'm jealous of White, since Black only cares about her and her wishes and I don't like that. White and I usually get along great and I like her a lot, but after she uses her powers, while she is paying her remuneration, I can't help but hate her a little._

_It's unsettling just how emotional I've become these last few weeks and it's all Black's fault, though I know that he has no idea that he had such a profound effect on me and even Red._

_Yes, even Red is quite taken with him, which surprised me at first, since they didn't get along at first (as I told you in earlier entries), but it seems that she finally decided that he is 'worthy' of her emotions – or maybe she is in the same boat as I am and simply can't help but like him._

_Unfortunately – or maybe fortunately – he wouldn't even notice it if it was twenty feet tall, hot pink and jumped on him._

_But back to the topic of just why I'm jealous. I hope you remember that I wrote in one of the previous entries that Black cradles his sister against him when she sleeps and he does that in such a way that you could think they're lovers instead of siblings._

_Which is disturbing to think about, but it's obvious that she is the only one he really cares about._

_It makes me wonder again just what made him the way he is, something which I've been thinking about a lot recently._

_You already know what I think of his 'split-personality' and it makes me envious that White can have this gentle side without even having to ask._

_That's the worst thing about it. White doesn't appreciate it one bit, no, she takes it for granted most of the time and sometimes watching the two of them makes me angry, since it's now obvious to me that Black was at first gentle and only learned how to be brutal later on._

_Re-reading what I wrote just now makes me laugh, since I sound like one of those females in a romance-novel, which is the last thing I want to be._

_It scares me sometimes, I admit, just how emotional I've become that I can be compared to a non-Contractor, much less one of those women in novels._

_I've been getting closer to Black and I have the feeling that he is slowly letting me in, trusting me, but there is always a certain distance between us that I can't bridge no matter what I do._

_Oh, but watching Black and White while she sleeps hasn't even been the worst of it, no. Black was injured and he won't let me help him, since it could wake up his sister, no matter that she can't wake up because her sleep is contract-induced, but he won't listen to me._

_But today, after watching them, after watching Black bleed, I swore that it won't always be that way. I'm going to get him to trust me and if it's the last thing I'll do._

* * *

November's eyebrows rose until they almost hit his hairline. While at first it had been a rather unemotional diary, now it was practically the journal of a hormonal teenager crushing on one of her school-mates.

The blonde couldn't help but grin at the thought of the cold, professional woman he had known writing something like this – it was unexpectedly hilarious, though November could relate to some of the things she mentioned.

After reading all those entries, he wanted to meet that boy she had met even more, if only to laugh at February later on for falling for someone – he ignored the voice in his head that whispered 'Hypocrite!' – and he wondered what kind of person could make the MI6's best agent fall for him.

Just as he was about to continue to read, someone knocked on the door and with a sigh November put down the diary in his hands and walked to the door, opening it and looking at a doctor, who said she wanted to talk to him.

Looking at Shengshun for a moment, the blonde decided to close the door to the room, not wanting to wake up the younger man with their conversation.

* * *

Sighing relieved Amber slowly crawled out of her hiding place beneath the empty bed that stood beside Hei's. She had thought that November was never going to leave, but he had finally left the room – for once she wasglad for her childish body,which had made it possible for her to hide like that.

Slowly she walked to the bed Hei was sleeping in, looking at his relaxed face that only sometimes twitched in pain, when he tried to move and jarred his injuries.

Words couldn't describe just how glad she was that the assassin was alright – or as 'alright' as one could be after being caught up in an explosion and it pained her that she couldn't even tell him that she had been concerned and that she was glad that he was alright.

Amber knew that, the moment he saw her, he would try to kill her, no matter what she said or did. Sighing deeply she turned to look at what November had been doing – she had heard him turn pages of a book of some kind and while it was possible that he had simply been reading a book to pass the time, she knew that he wasn't the type to calmly read something when the ones responsible for the injuries of his team-mates were still free.

Thinking about that, she started to wonder just what the MI6 agent had been doing in Hei's room – shouldn't he be waiting for news of April?

She had already confirmed that the dark-skinned woman was still alive, but in critical condition, but she really wanted to know what November was doing in the dark-haired man's room.

She hadn't foreseen that, she hadn't even dreamed that Hei could be close to someone in this city other than his current team-mates, but it seemed that the assassin was always out to prove her wrong.

Amber decided that she would order Amagiri to investigate the connection between the two men while she turned towards the book November had been reading.

She almost dropped it when she realised just what it was, shocked that it had survived the destruction of the Gate and shaking with horror as she turned to the last page in her diary, which was holding a small sketch of Hei in full battle-regalia.

Her heart thundering in her chest, the blonde Contractor prayed that her former colleague hadn't gotten to that part yet, as she hastily grabbed all the other files and stuffed them into a bag she had found in the only closet in the room – which would have been her preferred hiding-place hadn't she thought about someone looking for something in it.

She then closed the bag and opened the window of the room, looking down to see the small park surrounding one part of the hospital and quickly throwing the bag out of the window.

She just managed to close the window and crawl back beneath the bed, when the door opened and November came back into the room, muttering curses under his breath about annoying doctors, who couldn't give him clear answers about April's condition and who badgered him to go home and rest for a little, when it wasn't his fault that he hadn't slept the whole night, and why couldn't she leave him alone?

Amber smirked while she listened to the man's ramblings – she couldn't help it, but somehow she thought it was hilarious to hear the usual calm and collected November 11 that frazzled.

The smirk was wiped off her face when the blonde man stopped rambling and started to earnestly curse after realising that the files he had been reading were gone.

Both Amber and November froze, though, when Hei started to groan a little, obviously waking up from his pain, exhaustion and drug-induced sleep.

* * *

Erm, well, I guess the diary-idea is weird, isn't it? At first I wanted to write reports that Amber sent to the MI6, but then I found that if I did that, I wouldn't be able to write everything I thought needed to be written, so that spawned the idea for a diary.

I also changed the rating, since I thought that this chapter is a little hard for the current one.

Anyway, as always if you find mistakes, please tell me and I'll fix them and I hope you enjoyed it!

Yours,

TTF


	11. Chapter 11

SoB

A/N: Hi! It's been quite a long time since I updated hasn't it? And it's such a short chapter too... -sigh-

This chapter is dedicated to GoddessofWrath, AngelofSinner (who both help me out with this) and everyone who is reading this.

The pace is picking up so I hope you enjoy it!

* * *

When Hei opened his eyes for the second time that day (the second time he did it consciously), November was still – or was it again? – in the room and the assassin had to wonder why the MI6 agent was with him and not with April.

The blonde's presence would make it a lot more difficult to contact Huang, Mao or Yin than it already was, so he would have to think of something that got the other away from him.

Hei felt almost guilty for that thought when November smiled at him and he had difficulty meeting the older man's eyes, when he remembered just how he had fallen asleep, but he managed to ignore his embarrassment and returned Jack's gaze.

The agent had waited for that, it seemed, as his smile widened a little and he finally reacted to Hei being awake.

"Do you want something to drink? We don't want a repeat of the last time, do we?"

The assassin glared, but nodded slightly – his throat felt dry and his tongue stuck to the roof of his mouth.

He was startled, when November carefully slid an arm beneath his shoulders and gently helped him to sit up against the headboard. He wished he could ask the other one why he hadn't used the remote for the bed to make him sit up, but he didn't want to risk a coughing fit like last time.

The MI6 agent then carefully placed a glass of water against his lips and Hei was glad that it wasn't cold – he had had enough experience with injuries and dehydration to know that cold water would only aggravate his dry throat.

Slowly sipping the liquid and taking care not to get it down the wrong pipe, after a while he gently touched November's wrist to let him know that he had enough and the older one removed the glass.

"Are you now up to talking?"

The assassin suppressed the urge to roll his eyes.

"I can if I want to."

"Do you want to?"

Hei was startled by the seriousness in the other's eyes and the low tone of his voice and he knew that he had to look as startled as he felt for November to look at him half-amused, half-worried.

"Getting blown up isn't exactly the most relaxing experience there is. Do you want to talk about it?"

The dark haired man couldn't help but stare at the blonde, disbelief clearly visible on his face – he couldn't believe that the best agent of the MI6, a cold Contractor, had just asked him a question that was usually asked by a psychiatrist.

What he did next probably wasn't a very gracious and very out of character for him, but he couldn't help but burst into disbelieving laughter.

He probably did it because his guard was lowered because of the pain meds in his body (which would also explain why he had let November get that close to him before), but nonetheless, the sharp pain he felt in response to that was almost worth it, considering he hadn't laughed like that for several years.

Because of his wounds and the increasing pain, he curled up on his side, one arm wrapped around his chest as he tried to stifle his mirth.

After he finally managed to calm down he sheepishly looked at November who looked more annoyed than amused or worried now.

"That wasn't funny you know. I was – am – serious. Do you want to talk about it?"

Hei uncurled and for several seconds he just lay there and looked at the older one, before he gave one incredibly rare genuine smile and shook his head.

"I'm sorry for laughing, but I really don't want to talk about this. I don't remember anything that happened other that a loud noise and a lot of pain. The next thing I knew was that I woke up here and you asked me a question."

For a moment November had an almost guilty expression on his face before it vanished and the assassin frowned slightly as he thought about what could have triggered that emotion.

"What happened while I was unconscious?"

The blonde almost flinched, which surprised Hei, but he didn't take back the question. If it was something that concerned him, he had a right to know about it and there was no way this didn't have anything to do with him.

Soon the MI6 agent caved under his harsh gaze and started to explain what had happened.

Hei had the feeling that he wouldn't like where this story would end up.

As usual he would be right, but then one had to wonder – when did he ever?

* * *

November winced as he wondered how to answer that question – if he even should answer it.

The second thought was discarded immediately – Shengshun definitely had a right to know about what had happened. He had to know that he had talked – screamed – while delirious from pain and while the blonde dreaded his reaction, he knew that he couldn't keep this a secret.

One of the nurses had, most probably, informed a doctor and at least when Shengshun talked to the doctor, he would know about it – and November thought that it would be better if the younger man was told by someone he knew rather than a stranger.

Taking a deep breath the MI6 agent slowly started to talk – it startled him a little that he was more afraid of this, than a difficult assignment given to him by his organisation.

"This isn't the second time you are conscious – it's actually the third."

Again November winced when he noticed the alarm on the younger man's face and he didn't fell any better when the dark haired one demanded to know what he was talking about.

"The first time you woke up was some time after you were treated here – it was before you got these pain-killers. You were trashing around and screaming something that sounded like names."

The blonde abruptly broke off when Shengshun blanched as if he had seen a ghost and his voice cracked when he asked whose names he had been calling.

"I don't know about them, you didn't mention them when you told me about Mei Ling and Yîng and all that, but I think the names were… Amber, Carmine and… Pai?"

November wasn't sure about the last two names – he had remembered Amber, since it had been the one who had seemed to cause the younger man the most pain, but the others were more difficult to interpret and thus he wasn't sure if he had remembered them right.

It seemed he had, though, considering that the younger man had turned even paler than he already was, which was quite a feat, but the MI6 agent was worried that he was going to faint if he didn't catch his bearings.

"Did I… say… anything else?"

Shengshun sounded almost scared and the expression in his dark eyes was almost pleading, as if begging the blonde to say 'no', which, coupled with his chalk-white skin made for quite a picture.

November shook his head and told the younger one that he hadn't said anything else – he didn't add that Shengshun hadn't needed to, to get his point across – were he to say that, it was probable that the younger man would faint in shock. Even now he looked pasty and there was an expression of self-reproaching anger and apprehension on his face.

Without giving himself time to think about it and without giving the dark haired male a chance to react, he wrapped his arms around the younger one for the second time that day (the third time if one counted the time where he had held the other down to prevent him from hurting himself).

Shengshun tensed and his hands pressed against November's chest, trying to get the older one to release him, but the blonde didn't budge – he held the dark haired man tightly enough to prevent him from freeing himself, but not tight enough to hurt him.

After some time though the younger male stopped struggling and leaned against him, apparently too tired to do anything else.

November smiled slightly at that thought and gently brushed his lips against the other one's forehead, which made Shengshun sigh in annoyance.

"How come you always end up putting me in compromising positions? First at the police-station where you held my hand, always making suggestive comments – half of the police-force probably thinks we are dating or something."

The Chinese man mumbled, but made no other move to free himself – instead he slowly, hesitantly, slid his arms around the older man, unsure about what he should do with them, so he simply decided to return the hug he was given.

November had no way of knowing it, but Shengshun couldn't remember the last time he had been held like this – gently and without a reason other than comfort.

The embrace some time ago didn't really count in Hei's head, as he wrote that off as November trying to prevent him from coughing his lungs out.

It had been necessary to help him even out his breathing and nothing else – or so he told himself – while November now hugged him simply because apparently the older man wanted to offer comfort. The blonde could have ignored the assassin's obvious discomfort, but he had chosen to try and help ease it.

Usually he was the one holding others, protecting others and it felt _good_ to simply let down his guard while feeling the warmth of another body, of one that was trying to protect him.

He wondered if Pai had usually felt like this while he had held her.

* * *

Amber knew she shouldn't use her power for anything – the price for it was by far too great to pay – but she wanted out of the room _now_. The way the two other Contractors acted and talked made her feel like a voyeur and she had never felt more removed from the two men than she did now.

Both of them had been her friends – her comrades – at some point of time and just after she had met Hei, she had wondered how he would have gotten on with her pupil/partner November.

_I guess that question is answered now._

A bitter smile was on her face as she thought about what she was witnessing. She had needed a lot of time to earn Hei's trust and there were some things he had never allowed her to do – like comforting him with simple gestures.

How long had the two men know each other? November had come to Japan only a couple of months earlier, so how was it possible that he had earned the trust of someone as jaded and distrustful as Hei in such a short time?

Desperately shaking that thought out of her mind, the Contractor used her power and froze time.

Every noise around her stopped and she slowly crawled out from underneath the bed, climbed to her feet and brushed dust off her clothes.

She only resisted the urge to look at her former comrades for a short time, until she raised her head and stared.

November was sitting on the bed, both of his arms wrapped around the younger man's form, his cheek resting on the dark head. Hei was leaning forward, against the blonde, his head resting against the older one's shoulder, his arms returning the comforting gesture and after Amber stepped a little closer, she noticed that his eyes were closed, a relaxed look visible on his face.

She had never seen him like that.

Even when they hadn't been on a mission, they had still been in an area that could have been attacked at any time and none of them had ever been truly relaxed.

Seeing Hei like this now was almost painful, though it could be that the relationship between the two men could work to their advantage – the assassin would be more likely to go along with her plan were he about to lose a beloved person that was a Contractor.

But it also meant that she would have to keep an eye on the Brit to make sure that nothing happened to him, after all he needed to be alive to be of use.

Amber slowly reached out and brushed a strand of hair out of Hei's face, careful not to change too much. She ached to press her lips against his forehead, but she didn't dare to. It was obvious that he wasn't hers now – she wasn't the person he trusted the most after the five years she hadn't seen him.

November had taken her place, as bitter as it was for her and she had no right to do something like that when her former friends were in such an intimate position.

Taking one last look at the two, she quickly made her way out of the room. She had people to contact, files and a diary to burn and explosions to plan.

* * *

November didn't want to let go.

Feeling the younger man lean against him felt strangely right and he enjoyed feeling the warmth of the dark haired one.

Despite that, he slowly loosened his arms and Shengshun too let go of him, leaning back against the headboard – it was a very awkward moment and neither of them really knew what to say to dispel the tension between them.

"I'm sorry – I shouldn't have acted that impulsively. I apologize if I made you uncomfortable."

Before the Brit had even finished talking, the Chinese man was already shaking his head.

"You don't have to apologize. It's alright."

November relaxed when he heard those words, but as he wanted to reply, the door to the room was violently thrown open and a pale Decade stormed through the doorway.

"Jack, there is an emergency! I need you to look at something! And take the files with you."

The last sentence was added almost as an afterthought, but the way the older MI6 agent's eyes slid towards Shengshun made it almost seem as if he had said it deliberately.

November wondered why his superior would do something like that and, unable to find a decent explanation, he put it off as belonging to the 'strange-actions-of-someone-that-probably-won't-be-explained-and-must-therefore-be-ignored'-category of life and left it at that.

That didn't change the fact that he now had to explain to Decade why a bunch of high-security files had been stolen from a room nobody had had entry to – files that could be extremely dangerous in the wrong hands.

The Contractor could tell that this was going to be a conversation he definitely wouldn't enjoy.

He also wondered what on earth was important enough to make the usually composed senior agent look like he was having a heart attack.

Shengshun had watched all of this silently and November now took a look at him before turning back to his superior and answering.

"I'll be out in a second, go on ahead without me. I still have something to do."

Decade looked like he wanted to protest, but didn't. Instead he simply nodded and left the room, closing the door he had almost broken behind him.

The remaining MI6 agent turned back to the younger man in the room and swallowed thickly, not really believing what he was going to do next.

"What do you have to do? And what files was he talking about?"

Genuine confusion was visible on Shengshun's face and without thinking November answered while his eyes never left the dark haired man's face.

"I was given files about someone who betrayed my organisation and read them in this room. They were stolen while I was outside, talking to a nurse. You probably didn't notice anything because you were still out cold by that time. As for what I still have to do…"

The Brit paused and slowly moved closer to the younger man, one had cupping one of Shengshun's cheeks, a thumb slowly stroking one high cheekbone.

"I wanted to do this."

November raised his second hand to the dark haired male's face and leant in, gently pressing their lips together in a chaste kiss.

The younger one's lips were warm but chapped and November regretted that he didn't have the time to really savour it, but he had to go to Decade and kissing Shengshun any long could garner him a rather violent reaction, so he released the younger one and climbed to his feet, barely taking the time to wave at the still shocked man lying in the bed, staring at him with wide eyes before he left the room.

November's heart was pounding in his chest and after he closed the door behind him, he couldn't help but lean against it, wishing he could have initiated a more intimate kiss and also wishing that Shengshun would participate in it.

Then he started to walk towards Decade, who was waiting at the end of the hall, desperately trying to think of an excuse that could explain what had happened to the files he was supposed to take care of.

The Brit's ears were already ringing from all the shouting the older man was going to do and the tirade hadn't even started yet.

* * *

After November had left, Hei still continued to sit still like a statue, staring at the closed door as if it was a monster that was going to eat him any given moment.

The assassin had expected many things when he had questioned the older man, but never would he have thought of something like… like what had happened.

Slowly the dark haired man managed to regain his composure, but involuntarily a hand rose to cover his mouth and Hei lay down again, ignoring the pain the movement brought with it.

He didn't know what to think.

He and November had gotten along quite well and the assassin had to admit that something drew him to the older man, but the kiss just now had been completely unexpected.

When the MI6 agent had raised his hand, he had thought that maybe he wanted to shake hands (he was from Britain after all). When he had cupped his cheek, Hei had thought that maybe that was supposed to be a goodbye (though a rather strange one), but then the second hand had touched his face and November had-

Abruptly Hei cut off his thought, heat rising in his face and he groaned slightly, wishing he were still unconscious and drugged.

Wishing for something like this wouldn't make the problem go away though, so the Contractor would have to think about what to do and how to react to something like this.

Closing his eyes and thinking back to the situation, the assassin supposed that he had… enjoyed it. A little.

Sighing and wincing when the small movement brought pain (while he briefly wondered why the effect of the painkillers he had been given would already decrease) he mused that it hadn't been unpleasant.

November's lips had been softer than his own (well, he also hadn't been hit by a bomb) and it had been obvious that he had know what he was doing, his mouth easily covering the younger man's in just the right angle and pressure to make sure it was obvious what he had been doing, but not enough to turn it into something more heated.

Hei's face burned at that thought.

He really didn't know why he was that embarrassed. It wasn't the first time he had kissed someone, or had been kissed by someone so there was really no reason to feel like his head would explode from all the blood streaming into it, but he really couldn't help it.

Angrily the assassin clenched a fist – he hadn't felt like this when he had kissed the doll that had been a double for Shinoda Chiaki, so it angered him that he now felt this weak at the mere thought of a kiss.

Maybe, a voice told him, he felt like this because it had been November 11 who had kissed him – someone he had a connection with and whom he liked. Sometimes.

Hei wanted to deny that thought, but somehow he couldn't.

He had never been particularly good at lying to himself, even though he could be indecisive sometimes and he really couldn't deny that his first kiss in years had felt good, even though – or maybe because of – it had been with an arrogant, blonde, British snob, who by the way was also a Contractor.

And too curious for his own good and kind to his friends and not nearly as cold and reserved as he seemed to be at first glance and horrible at making jokes and strange in a good way and he had these really blue eyes and he loved to tease his team-mates and-

Hei really had to wonder when he had managed to find out that much about the older man when he had spent a lot of his time trying to avoid the other one.

He had enjoyed the kiss, he could admit that, but what did that mean for him now?

He didn't know if the reason behind November's actions was really a romantic one or if he had simply done it to continue to comfort him as a friend.

Hei decided that he would ask when the older man was back – there was no use in prolonging the inevitable after all.

* * *

Tiredly November exited the hospital, July close behind him.

Decade had been livid when he had heard that the younger agent had lost the files ("I didn't lose them, they were stolen!") due to his irresponsibility ("I wasn't irresponsible, I was outside talking to a nurse! How is talking to a nurse about the condition of one of your friends irresponsible?!") and he had ignored November's every attempt of trying to calm him down while he had ranted, before growing even more livid when he had realised that they had been stolen before the Contractor had even gotten the chance to fully read them ("I'm telling you, it wasn't my fault!").

November knew that this was going to have dire consequences, since, apparently he had lost the original files and there hadn't been any copies – which made him wonder why Decade always dragged around February's files.

The older agent had told him to go after the bombers that had started to destroy one building after another after he had been finished with his lecture and November was more than glad to oblige.

Of course, he would have rather spent his time with Shengshun, but he thought that after kissing the younger man it would be a good idea to leave him alone to think for a while and the Brit had to admit that he, too, had to think about several things.

For instance when his orientation had changed and when he had started to want the Chinese man as a lover.

He couldn't think of a concrete time, but he had to admit that he had felt some kind of attraction ever since he had first seen the younger male. It had only been strengthened by Shengshun's explosion (he couldn't help but grimace at his own choice of words) after being teased and by hearing about the younger man's past, but he knew that he had first realised it on that night, where the both of them had helped Mei Ling and Yîng escape.

And it hadn't gone away – no matter how much November cursed it or ignored it or tried to make it leave, it stayed and even grew stronger until the event today had happened, where the Brit had been unable to contain himself.

Sighing deeply he ignored July's gaze and instead continued to walk towards the car-park he had parked his car in (thus _car-_park), the Doll following him obediently.

Hadn't November known better, he would have said that his day couldn't get any worse, but being who he was and having the experience he had, he didn't say it, not wanting to tempt fate into doing something horrible to him.

* * *

Well, this is it for this chapter (already...). If you find any mistakes please tell me and I'll do my best to fix them, as always.

Just as a question - does anyone think I'm being too hard on Amber? I'm doing my best to hold back, but I'm not really sure how well I succeed.

Yours,

TTF


	12. Chapter 12

A/N: It's been more than a month since I last updated and I'm very sorry for that. I started University last month and things have been hectic to say the least... -sigh-

Now what to say to this chapter... A lot of the dialogue in certain scenes is taken from the subtitles, which I hope isn't too annoying. I also hope you'll enjoy this chapter!

As always, please tell me if you find mistakes and I'll do my best to fix them!

* * *

While driving to the CIA building that had exploded only fifteen minutes before November got a call that told him new information of the explosion.

Apparently a Chinese intelligence agent was responsible for it, but the Brit knew that there had to be more to it than that.

Nothing ever was the way it seemed where intelligence agencies were involved and that the information about the explosion had come that quickly was way too suspicious to simply ignore.

It was probably orchestrated to look that way by someone who wanted to upset every agency in Tokyo and they were succeeding for now. And the only one who would get something out of his would be February since it would distract the organisations that were dangerous to her and whatever scheme she had in mind.

Glaring at the street in front of him, November started to make his way to the Chinese Embassy.

He was going to find out just what the hell was going on and he would get back at the blonde Contractor and if it was the last thing he did.

*+*+*

When Huang had watched the morning news, he had almost chocked on his coffee when he had realised just who had been blown up together with that MI6 chick and it had taken him a while to get his bearings back.

Afterwards he had done what he did best – he had stuck his nose into things that weren't really any on his business (only that they really were since his life depended on his ability to gather information for the organisation) and what he found was something that he really, really didn't like.

Someone had blown up the building that had contained the meteor shard that Hei had managed to get out of the Gate and the shard was gone. Not only that, but both the MI6 agent and Hei had been taken to the hospital alive, but both with injuries, April's worse that the assassin's.

_What a great time to get yourself into trouble you bastard._

The Chinese man was one of the most infuriating trouble-finders Huang had ever met. No matter in what kind of situations the assassin got himself into, somehow he always managed to make things even worse – it was a wonder that the boy had managed to live past his fifth year considering that he had probably gotten into trouble his whole life.

Cursing under his breath the man wished that it was possible to retire from the organisation or at least get himself transferred to another team, but that was pretty much impossible.

So he did what he always did and tried to get his annoying, infuriating, frustrating, dumb Contractor team-mate out of the trouble he had once again managed to get himself into.

_Damn. Why the hell is it always me that has to clean up after every single one of these idiots? I'm starting to feel like an old housewife and I sure don't like that feeling._

When Hei was back, he was going to get an earful – that was sure.

*+*+*

For some reason Hei felt a shiver of dread run up his spine, the one that was usually accompanied by one of Huang's anti-Contractor, anti-team-mates, anti-everything rants that lasted for a very, very long time when the older man got into the mood.

Sinking lower into his bed Hei suddenly wished that a nurse would come back to drug him up again.

*+*+*

Slowly driving past the Chinese Embassy November couldn't help but smirk grimly when a loud explosion proved his theory right.

It was a pity that he wasn't really happy about that.

In actuality he would rather that an all out war than be a part of February's games and doings, thought that was probably only because right now he really, really wanted to hurt her.

Besides it wasn't as if intelligence agencies hadn't worked against each other for years – a war would probably only make things official.

Speeding up and around a corner, the Brit got closer to the explosions that were still happening, wanting to get a closer look at everything.

One of them was close to the wall they were driving past and it was the only warning November had to stop the car and shield July with his body before the wall was ripped apart in a cloud of fire, dust and debris.

After everything had calmed, November slowly sat up, glad that he had managed to avoid injuries – though his beautiful, beloved car was totalled.

Really, he was starting to hate Amber more and more.

First one of his friends, then his love-interest and now his car?

This was getting even more personal than it already was and when the Brit caught sight of the Caucasian boy with the mismatched eyes that April was talking about, he knew that he had found the ideal outlet for his anger and frustration.

_Come to daddy,_ he thought, a malicious smile forming on his face.

He barely remembered to give July a few instructions about what he should do should anything happen before he followed the young Contractor that had started to leave the scene.

When he walked around the corner he was met with a spray of water and a large puddle in front of him, separating him from that infernal child that now faced him with an empty expression on his face, not unlike Shengshun's when they had first met.

But whereas the Chinese man had made him curious and had intrigued him, this kid only pissed him off.

Attacking him wouldn't give him any answers though and he needed at least some of those if he didn't want to get even more on Decade's bad side than he already was through losing those damned files. He could always kick that kid's ass after getting some useful information.

"Where is February?" That was really all he needed to know since her scheme wasn't important anymore after he killed her.

"Where is codename: Amber?"

The answer he got was predictable.

"I won't tell."

November's reaction was even more predictable. Now Decade wouldn't be able to say that he hadn't tried to get any information – it was only that the brat didn't want to tell him. He had asked after all, that had to count for something.

"Then I'll have to make you."

November started to freeze the water he was standing on and froze the boy's feet to the floor. Then he started to walk towards him, inwardly rubbing his hands gleefully as he thought about the best method to make the child talk.

His thoughts were interrupted though, when the kid put his thumb to his nose. The action was too strange to ignore in such a situation, especially considering he was dealing with a Contractor, no matter how young he was, so November slowed down.

If this boy was the one causing these explosions, he didn't want to be blown up and he readied himself for anything that could happen.

And happen it did.

When that spawn flicked his nose, the ground around the Brit glowed, several small handprints becoming visible as suddenly his world was filled with smoke and fire, heat suddenly exploding around him.

Well, it was definitely a good thing that he had readied himself after all – he really didn't want to end up in the hospital bed beside Shengshun after all.

That would be embarrassing.

Besides being in the same bed with the Chinese man was enough for him he smirked as he froze his surroundings.

An inappropriate thought, but somehow it cheered him up.

*+*+*

Somehow Hei started to feel as if the world was out to get him. It wasn't really all that different from what he usually felt – being an assassin for a world-wide criminal organisation who wasn't really popular with his superiors and all – but it seemed that the bomb had done more damage than expected.

Caution was good, a little paranoia was good too, but the feeling he got now made him want to hide beneath his blanket and wait till this whole disaster was over.

Which was uncharacteristic of him.

Damn bomb.

Damn organisation.

Damned November.

Really, as if he didn't have enough problems already.

*+*+*

Quickly Mao snuck past another nurse, cursing the fact that it was always him who had to play messenger-boy. Honestly, just because he wasn't in a human body anymore, didn't mean Huang could send him to the wolves. If those nurses found him, he was done for, cute cat or not (and he was quite proud of his looks, even though it got him into trouble everything all those other cats got into heat…) and not even he could recover from being skinned, decapitated and having his head stuck on a pole for all to see.

On second thought, maybe he should cut back on these medieval dramas he had started to watch recently, they were making his already active imagination even worse than it usually was.

But really, what had Hei gotten himself into now?

Wasn't it enough that he had been stalked by that MI6 agent, was somehow getting most females he met to madly fall in love with him (not that Mao envied him, no, not in the least…), now he had even managed to get himself blown up when he was needed.

Mao really didn't want to be Hei when Huang would let out his frustration at having to bail the assassin out one more time from a troublesome situation.

The human had softened a little after the incident with Yin (though he was still his usual cranky self), but it seemed that the time of good-guy – well, maybe not good-guy, but at least a-little-more-pleasant-than-usual – Huang were over and done with.

What a pity.

It would probably be up to Mao again to make sure that the team-morale (what little of it that existed) didn't vanish completely.

Honestly, wasn't it kind of pathetic that the mood-maker and generally most down-to-earth member of their team was a cat?

Yes, Mao had been human once and his mind still was, but he had lost his body several years ago and he had grown that used to it that he could barely remember what it was like to have a human body.

The instincts that came with this body and the few times where he had been taken over by the consciousness of a cat had changed him and there was little he could do against that.

It was for that reason that he pitied the Contractor they had met some time ago, who had had the same power as Mao, only that it worked solely on humans.

They had been in the same boat, but while Mao's loss of his body had been abrupt and extreme, the body of an animal being extremely different than that of a human (if one didn't count various apes), but that other Contractor had always inhabited a human body that wasn't his own. He had always been reminded of what he had lost and, even worse, he had had something that reminded him of it – his sock.

In a way Mao had both envied him and pitied him. The cat could never return to being human and he knew it – he also didn't have anything of his physical, human body that could always remind him of what he had lost – but that man was always stuck in the human body of another person, probably looking for a body that wouldn't feel alien to him, always being reminded by the faint trace of his smell still lingering on his sock.

How on earth had that guy even died that he had managed to get his sock off his corpse after transferring to his friend's body? Wouldn't something else have been more prudent? Like a jacket or something?

That was probably a question he would never get an answer to.

A pity – it would have been interesting to know.

*+*+*

Tiredly Hei turned his head towards the door when he heard a faint scratching on it.

The only one who would do something like that was Mao, which meant that he would probably get out of the hospital soon. His injuries weren't anything serious and Hei was glad to get out of this overly sterile environment – before that though, he would have to get up and let Mao inside the room.

Grimacing in distaste, he shut off the machines he was hooked to and removed the various needles and machines from his body before he slowly sat up, only barely managing to keep his noise to a slight gasp of pain.

He swung his legs off the bed, gritting his teeth and fighting to breathe evenly – that was it. He could deal with pain, but he promised himself that it would be the last time he was going to be blown up. Hopefully. Maybe. Probably not, but one could always hope.

Gently the assassin lowered himself to the floor, one hand on the bed to see if his legs could hold his weight, before he relaxed a little as they showed no signs of giving out on him.

Now he was glad that he had finally given in to his urges and had a nurse inject at least his legs with some pain-killers. She had been curious about why he only wanted his legs to be painless, but he couldn't tell her that in any situation it was more useful to be able to run than anything else. If he had gotten something for his ribs too, that would have gone to his head quickly.

Besides he hadn't really expected to need them anyway – it had just been a precaution in case something happened.

Hei really didn't like drugs, since they always caused him to feel strange and in his opinion he had already acted way too out of character that day to risk getting another big dose of pain-killers.

Finally the assassin managed to get to the door and he quickly opened it. A small black form shot into his room and Hei smirked a little when he heard Mao's irritated muttering – the man turned cat was always amusing when he was irritated – something that happened far too rarely in the dark haired man's opinion.

Exhausted he dragged his body back to the bed and lay down again, wondering when he was ever going to get the chance to really rest.

Honestly, he had been blown up just that morning and it was only afternoon – so what if his injuries hadn't been life-threatening? It still hurt and he felt emotionally drained after the incidents with November.

Really, the way the older man always managed to push his buttons but placate him again afterwards was as annoying as it was endearing. Somewhat.

Which was disconcerting, since the last time Hei had thought that something was endearing, it had been a dog when he had been a child – just before that dog, which apparently hadn't liked him, had started to bark, hunt him around and finally gave him a very painful bite that hadn't healed for several weeks.

Ever since then he had always kept a respectful distance from everything and everyone who could potentially be 'endearing'.

It seemed like he had noticed November a little too late to do damage-control though, which probably meant that he would have to live with it (or 'him' in that case).

Sighing deeply he finally turned to Mao, who had been watching him with a strange look on his face (had he known that the other Contractor was wondering whether the assassin had been given one of those 'medicate-yourself-with-pain-killers-when-you-are-hurting-again'-buttons and had pressed it one too many times, Hei would probably have gotten quite upset with his team-mate), and asked him what he wanted.

Mao rolled his eyes (or he rolled them as much as a cat could roll them) and started to talk.

"Several intelligence agencies and embassies have been blown up today and I was the one to inform you that Huang is going to get you out of the hospital as soon as he can. The building that exploded was one that was used by the syndicate and they stored the meteor-shard there. Now it's gone and you need to find out who they are and get it back from them. Our guess is that the MI6 stole it and-"

The Contractor was interrupted by his injured team-mate.

"The MI6 has nothing to do with this. They were panicking just half an hour or so ago because of these bombings I assume. Besides the woman that was injured was a professional and a Contractor – had she been in on this, she never would have gotten hurt."

The cat stared at Hei.

"Why on earth do you know all those things about the MI6? Aren't they supposed to be a secret organisation that only works from the shadows? You know – like a _secret service_ ? Emphasis on _secret_ ?"

The assassin glare at the animal (which unfortunately didn't have any effect on the cat, that was way too curious for his own good) before reluctantly starting to push the machines and IVs he had ripped out of his flesh back to their places.

"November 11 was here some time ago. Then someone who is obviously working with him barged in and said something of an emergency. Besides I met April some time ago."

If Mao had had visible eyebrows and a hairline, both would have touched each other in his surprise.

"Your stalker roared his annoying head again? You're quite popular you know. Have you ever considered hosting a talk-show? I could be the mascot – Mao, the amazing, astounding, eloquent, talking animal! I can already see the headlines."

Hei glared harder and delighted in the flinch that the cat gave when he stabbed an IV needle into himself quite violently.

"How about you finish informing me, Mao – the annoying, aggravating, blathering little rodent."

The other Contractor mockingly drew in a sharp breath.

"Rodent? Oh Hei, one could think you didn't love me anymore!"

The assassin twitched as his mind flashed back to November's kiss and for some reason he felt the need to bodily harm someone – it was a good thing then, that he had a wonderful target right in front of him, which he could scare half to death.

"I don't love you and the headlines in the paper are going to read 'Animal violently killed – DNA-test needed to figure out what kind of species it actually was!' if you don't finish talking in the next five minutes."

Hei smirked, bloodlust clearly visible in his eyes and his hands twitched lightly as he wished for his knife. Mao's eyes widened and the man turned cat cautiously backed away.

He wasn't usually afraid of the assassin, but one could never know just how the usually cold Contractor would react when under medication and it was impossible to be too careful when dealing with Hei and his unpredictability.

_I knew he pressed that self-medication-button a few times too much!_

"Right. Anyway, if you're sure that the MI6 and your stalker-friend don't have anything to do with this, then find out who it was, because if you don't the syndicate is going to be very annoyed with us – which is something I don't really care for. Well, that's all. If Huang finds out something new, I'll come again. See you later!"

And with that the cat shot out of the door through the small opening Hei had left him. The assassin really hadn't believed that he had the energy to get out of bed a second time, so he had left the door open. It was probably not the smartest thing to do when they had been talking about things that could get them killed and/or arrested, but at the moment Hei really couldn't bring himself to care.

_Honestly – I can't even walk a couple of steps without feeling completely drained and the syndicate wants me to investigate the bombings? They want me to fight and kill those that stole the shard? How on earth am I supposed to do that?_

Sighing again Hei threw an arm over his eyes, cursing when that movement almost ripped the IV needle out of his arm.

This was just not his day.

*+*+*

Tiredly July made his way through the city, looking for a payphone or something similar. It was raining and the boy wondered why he hadn't been able to contact _her_ when water was _her_ element. That thought made him feel restless – _she _ was the only one of his kind that he knew and he liked _her_ .

_She_ wasn't as important to him as his team-mates, but _she_ was close. The relationship they had was friendly and almost like the one between siblings (or like he imagined the relationship between siblings to be) – he felt comfortable when talking to _her_ and _she_ never refused to listen, sometimes even giving him advice and information on how to act and do things.

He needed _her_ now.

_She_ was older than him and more experienced in finding things and he wanted to find November – he knew _she_ could help him with that.

So where was _she?_

*+*+*

Slowly Amber ran her hands through Yin's soft silver hair. The blind girl had followed her without questioning her too much and now she was fast asleep, her head in the older women's lap.

She wondered if Hei was going to get her message and she wondered if it even mattered anymore. The assassin probably would get it, since she had taken the Doll away from the safe-house she lived in – as soon as they would be unable to contact her, the old man and the cat would get it to the only fighter in their team.

She listened as the rain fell around her and she wondered if everything she had worked that hard for was going to be realised or if it was going to vanish in an explosion of death and devastation.

*+*+*

Exhausted Mao made his way towards the safe-house, wondering why he hadn't been able to contact Yin. He didn't want to admit it, but he was worried. In the hospital it had been easy to pretend not to notice the way Hei would flinch every time he moved, but it had shocked the Contractor just how horrible the assassin looked.

Sure, he had always been pale and thin (which was unfair considering how much he ate), but the pasty whiteness of his face when he had opened the door and his laboured breathing still stuck in Mao's memory.

How was Hei going to be able to investigate and fight when he almost collapsed just by walking?

It was impossible and now something had apparently happened to Yin, who had always been closer to Hei than anyone else in their team (which wasn't that hard, considering that Huang hated Contractors and Dolls and Mao got more amusement out of it by simply watching events unfold), which didn't bode well for all of them.

And as if that weren't enough, Huang had been called to his superiors for new orders or something like that. Mao didn't really like the older man, but their team – somehow they always ended up sticking together and he respected the former cop for not betraying Yin to the syndicate. It wasn't easy to stick up for someone in their organisation and Huang had done it despite his obvious fear of it.

Shaking these depressing thoughts out of his head, he avoided a car that could have killed him and after running for some time, he finally arrived at the shop.

As expected the Doll wasn't there and Mao cursed under his breath, unknowingly using some of the swear-words Hei had used some time earlier.

Nothing was out of place and it seemed that the blind girl had left out of her own volition.

Just as he wanted to leave again he noticed a pink envelope on one of the shelves, which piqued his interest – Yin was a Doll and didn't have any interest in anything she wasn't supposed to and that thing was really, really conspicuous.

Mao managed to get it off the shelf, but it was sealed shut and he didn't want to risk damaging the letter that was obviously in it by trying to rip it open with his teeth (why on earth didn't cats have any thumbs?), so he decided that he would take it back to Hei.

Huang wasn't an option, since he was in a meeting right now and the cat wasn't suicidal enough to try and interrupt it, so the other Contractor was the only one left.

The animal sighed deeply – he was starting to feel like a real gofer-boy.

*+*+*

When a nurse came into his room and told him he was free to go if he made it to the door without collapsing (with obvious disapproval on her face), Hei felt both relieved and anxious – relieved because he could get out of the hospital since he hated them and anxious because he didn't think he could make it to the door in the first place. Because of this, he was even gladder when the woman left after removing him from the machines and giving him a bag full of clothes that had apparently been given to her by someone who could have really been more polite about the whole thing (which made Hei wonder if Huang had been the one to bring him these clothes or someone else – he guessed it had been someone paid to do it since Huang hated hospitals almost as much as he hated Hei).

So he slowly got dressed and tried to ignore the pain he felt as well as he was able – until he heard someone scratch the door, which caused his eyebrows to hit his hairline. It seemed that something had come up earlier than he had expected and the assassin grimaced when he opened the door, wearing his customary jeans and button-down shirt, trainers covering his feet.

For the second time that day Mao darted into the room, only this time… carrying a bright pink envelope?

Hei really couldn't suppress the smirk that tugged on his lips – this was way too good an opportunity to let it pass.

"Why Mao, I never knew you felt that way, though you never stuck me as the type to write love-letters."

The cat-Contractor glared and spat out the envelope as if it was something disgusting.

"It's not from me. Yin has gone missing and this was in her room. I didn't want to risk damaging it, so I brought it to you since you have the thumbs necessary to open it."

Mao was almost growling and Hei continued to smirk while he slowly bent down to get that blasted letter off from the floor – he refused to show his pain, no matter how much it actually hurt.

The smirk on his face died a quick and violent death when he flipped the letter and saw the signature on the back.

_Amber._

Immediately any thought of pain left his mind and all he could do for a moment was to stare at the paper in his hands, disbelief warring with fury and loathing until the latter two finally won the fight.

Hatred coursed through his being and he violently ripped the envelope in his hast to get to the letter, ignoring the confused look that Mao sent him.

He barely remembered the words November had told him.

"_I was given files about someone who betrayed my organisation and read them in this room. They were stolen while I was outside, talking to a nurse…"_

Of course.

Neither he nor November nor anyone else could have noticed her if she had used her power. That meant that she had been in the hospital. In his room. Maybe she had even touched him.

Fury made him grip the letter hard and, not even taking notice of his body's protests, he walked out of the door, an angry look on his face while his movements were slow and controlled – he didn't make any sound as he moved past an astonished nurse that had fully expected him to collapse after his first step.

Hei had been right. This really wasn't his day. He had been blown up, drugged, been vulnerable in front of someone who should be his enemy (and the 'should be' pissed him off even more), had been kissed by said 'enemy' and he was in unbelievable pain.

It was a good thing then, the assassin with the messier-code BK-201 thought, that he knew exactly who was to blame for this and where he could find them.

_I'm going to make her regret ever stepping into my life and trying to meddle with it._

_And I'm going to enjoy it._

*+*+*

In the meantime November had another problem and it was one he wasn't sure how to get out of.

He had been kidnapped and he hadn't had time to smoke yet and he really didn't want to find out what would happen to him were he unable to obey his contract – he had the feeling it would be ugly.

He had been watching his abductors quietly, but he was slowly getting uneasy with how much time had passed since he had used his abilities, so he decided to speak up.

"Sorry to interrupt you but could I trouble you for a smoke? They are in my left-hand pant pocket."

November really hated his obeisance – life was short enough without getting lung-cancer because of smoking. Everyone in his family had a susceptibility to cancer (his father had died of lung-cancer and several others of his relatives too) and November had no desire to meet his deceased relatives while he was still young and good-looking.

He only wanted to meet them when he was very, very old and good-looking – though if he had truly wanted that, maybe he should have chosen a different career.

The answer he got to his question frustrated him, but didn't surprise him.

"I can't touch you. You are a skilled Contractor. In a split-second you managed to diffuse a tremendous explosion."

These words really did wonders for his self-confidence, but as it was, he preferred the cigarette to flattery.

"I appreciate the compliment, but I'd really prefer a cigarette."

What came next annoyed him to the point where he promised himself to never, ever mention his knowledge about cigarettes again.

Somehow he could rather relate to the poor guy, whose hand he had frozen off when he had been looking for Havoc, now – if he had been that annoying then as this guy was now, it really was no wonder he had attacked the Brit.

"Did you know that tobacco affects those in the vicinity more than it does the smoker himself? Inhaled directly, smoke contains 5,3 to 43 nanograms of carcinogenic nitrosamines, compared to 680-"

Annoyed November interrupted the other Contractor (or the one he assumed to be another Contractor) – he really didn't need some one-eyed kidnapper to tell him about the hazards of smoking when he knew more about it than that guy could ever hope to.

"I know full well. No need to continue."

For a moment the man just looked at him, before he replied.

"Do you know what happens to a Contractor who doesn't make obeisance? I've always wanted to see it. Do you think it's true that you'd melt like butter?"

November tensed.

Great now his kidnappers had turned out to be assholes too. Way to go Jack! He could almost hear April's mocking laughter and wondered when he had started to get into these kinds of situations.

Right. Now he remembered.

Shengshun was an incredibly beautiful and smart man, but it seemed like his tendency to get into trouble was catching.

"Just kidding. I remember there being a vending machine near here," the man said and then left.

These words made him relax again, but he vowed to never use those words again either.

Honestly – if he had been just a little like this guy, he admired Shengshun's patience even more. Just exchanging a few words with him made him want to hurt something (or rather, a specific annoying someone) and when he got back to the younger man, he was definitely going to apologize for stalking and annoying him.

The kid that was obviously responsible for the injuries of April and his love-interest was still practising phrases in Japanese. November being November couldn't help but comment, now that his continued existence was secured.

"It's quite admirable, young man, that you manage to keep up with your studies when you're so busy with all these bombings."

"They give me a strange sort of feeling. Amber taught them to me."

November twitched when he heard that name. It surprised him that his former colleague had kept the code-name she had gotten in the syndicate – he hadn't thought that she was audacious enough to actually call herself a name that probably every major intelligence agency in the world knew. Then again, the syndicate she served probably protected her, though he had expected that she would have gotten a new name after she had betrayed the MI6.

The kid continued to speak and the Brit forced himself to pay attention.

"I don't really want to practice them since they don't really mean anything, but Amber told me that it is important and that I should do it. But I still think that it's just chanted gibberish. I would do anything for Amber though, so I practice every day. I would destroy the city or anything else she wants me to."

Then the boy smiled and November wished he had frozen the kid's full body instead of only his feet. It would have spared him this experience for sure.

_Creepy, creepy, creepy – talk about obsessed, really February has strange taste in her companions. First a brutal human killer, then a creepy little Contractor-kid_ _– talk about strange._

Crept out by that answer and expression, November didn't reply to that and everything was silent for some time.

The red-headed guy came back and let him smoke too, which was a relief, but it seemed that the boy was curious about him and started to question him.

"Say, may I ask you something? Why do you, a Contractor, serve the humans? We're the chosen people. Those who have not entered into a contract fear us. Well, of course they do. A new, more powerful race has appeared, one more fit to rule this world."

Were he a more expressive person, his lips would have curled in disgust. It wasn't that he really disagreed with what the kid had said, but the blatant arrogance in that statement made him sick.

This kid, who couldn't have been more than 10 years old, who had probably never really had to struggle in his life and who was obviously completely dependant on February didn't have the right to talk that way about anyone.

There were humans that had struggled, suffered and gone to hell just in order to survive and, while his mind flashed back to the story Shengshun had told him, November answered, mockery clearly audible in his voice.

"And did Professor Amber teach you that as well?"

His former colleague had never really been one to talk about humans that way, but one could never know – maybe she had always thought that way and simply hidden it. Now that he thought about it, probably every Contractor felt some disdain for the human part of their race, even November, but slowly, over the course of the last few months, he had grown to appreciate and even like the emotionality and irrationality of the humans he had met.

Misaki, who was always strict, but also kind and strong, Saito, who was obviously helplessly in love with his boss, who didn't trust them but always helped them out anyway, the rest of the team, that worked together to get the best possible results and, of course, Shengshun – who was the most intriguing man the Brit had ever met.

He could be cold and calculating, like when he had lied for his sister-in-law and niece, but he could also be angry, passionate and hot-headed if the situation called for it.

All in all, November rather liked humans, no matter how narrow-minded and idiotic some of them were.

"Amber didn't say it. All she told me was that we had to reproduce the same tragedy here that occurred in South America."

The Brit's eyes narrowed. That was February's goal? If she really tried to accomplish something like that, she would completely annihilate the whole city. There had to be a reason for that – no matter how much contempt a Contractor held for humans, few of them really tried to commit mass-murder.

The people that had entered a contract were rational beings – they knew that, should they try and do something like that, they would be hunted down by every human that knew about them and, while a considerable percentage of the population on earth were Contractors, humans were still a lot more numerous than them.

"Why?"

Why would someone as smart and capable as February try and destroy a whole city? Except… maybe it wasn't the city that she wanted to destroy.

The Gate in South America had been impossible to access ever since five years ago – did Amber want to do the same thing here?

"I don't know. But Amber said we must. It must be necessary."

Of course – there was no way that the former number one of the MI6 would let a talkative brat like that in on her plans. She wasn't that sloppy.

Not really expecting anything else, the MI6 agent was surprised when the red-headed man started to talk. He had been quiet during their conversation, though he had listened with interest and only now took part in it.

"You should understand why we came together and what our actions mean."

The sturdy man got up from his seat and stepped closer to November, almost formally.

"We of the Evening Primrose welcome you. Will you join us?"

It was good to know that he was such a popular man and that they obviously thought much of his intelligence, but 'Evening Primrose' really had to work on its recruitment strategies – kidnapping and trying to kill someone really wasn't the best way to gather followers.

"What privileges would I gain for joining this merry band?"

"A future."

Alright, maybe they didn't need to work on it as much as November had thought. The ominous answer to his question surprised him and made him suspicious. The man knew something and whatever it was, it obviously wasn't good.

"If you think about your situation, you don't really have much choice. Make the rational decision, November 11."

The feeling of déjà vu that hit the Brit was surprisingly strong and it took the MI6 agent a moment to place it. When he did though, he couldn't help but burst out laughing. It had been quite some time since he had thought about BK-201 – the one man that came close to fascinating him as much as Shengshun had.

A Contractor who was irrational enough that he could compete and win against most humans and who was impossible to read – even Contractors gave their thoughts away through mimic and body language, but other than an underlying anger November had been completely unable to predict the syndicate member's actions. The scar he now bore on his arm was proof of that.

Slowly he managed to calm himself again, taking several deep breaths to keep himself from laughing.

"Oh, my, excuse me. It's just that I said something quite similar to another Contractor not long ago. What do you think he did then? He actually turned and attacked me, even though he had absolutely no way to win. I didn't understand how such a Contractor could exist. As much as I thought about it, I simply couldn't fathom what he was thinking and what he could have been working towards."

But he understood it a little better now that his emotions had become strong once again. He couldn't help but wonder – had BK-201 also found someone who had managed to give him back his feelings? November thought of the anger that had been visible in the assassin – it had been just a few moments after he had killed Havoc – maybe it had something to do with her?

He wondered about the connection between the two of them – the red-headed woman and the dark haired Shinigami. Whatever it was, the Brit knew that the chance of him finding out about it was slim.

"What a moral quandary. Is that Contractor a metaphor for yourself?"

November had to ask himself the same question. He didn't want to join Evening Primrose, not if their goal was to destroy the whole city, in which April was fighting for her life, Misaki lived in and Shengshun was lying injured in a hospital, too hurt to move.

He didn't want to work with the arrogant brat that was the cause of his team-mate's and friend's pain and he hated the fact that when he would have to disagree, if Misaki didn't show up soon, it was going to end quite badly for him.

He hoped she did, he hoped that July had been able to talk to her already and he really hoped that a small army of armed men was going to barge through the door soon.

"Of course not. Personally I'm proud of being a Contractor. I'll make the rational choice."

Well, it seemed that his hopes had been dashed pretty quickly.

"Then-"

The Brit suspected that the only satisfaction he would get out of this was going to be the shocked looks on these smug bastards' faces when he refused.

"I refuse."

To his surprise and pleasure though, he heard a crash outside the door and threw himself to the ground, knowing what it most probably was.

As if his thoughts had been heard and visualised, a small army of armed and masked men threw the door open and entered the room quickly and professionally, Misaki following soon after.

The words that she spoke next sounded beautiful in his ears.

"We have you surrounded! Don't move! Put your hands behind your heads. Slowly!"

The two Contractors obeyed, but November had the feeling that they still had an ace up their sleeves – but that wasn't any of his business now.

He had found the ones responsible for the bombings, which meant that Decade would (probably) forgive him for letting the files out of his sight even though he had had to be kidnapped to do it properly.

"You're like my princess on a white horse Misaki."

She really was a sight for sore eyes and November was eager to get out of the ropes that constricted his movement.

"Who are they?"

As always the woman went straight to business and the Brit was too pleased with himself to comment on her apparent lack of concern about any possible wounds he could have gotten.

"The culprits behind all the bombings."

She was startled and the MI6 agent relished her surprise – really, it surprised him that he was that appreciative of a 'mere' human, but it wasn't a bad thing.

For some reason he thought that, were he just a little bit more arrogant and were his opinion just a little more like the arrogant brat's, Shengshun would give him another black eye and refuse to ever see him again.

"I'm glad you're safe. One of your friends told me where you were."

November arched his eyebrows. He was pleased that Misaki finally showed an ounce of concern for him but- friends? What on earth?

His surprise must have shown on his face as he asked about it and it startled him that July was the one she meant. It was obvious that the Doll had been the one to tell her where he was, but it was startling that the boy who should have been unable to feel even the slightest thing thought of him in such a way. The blue eyed man appreciated it.

"You will come to us again! We will meet again!"

And just as the blonde had started to feel warm and fuzzy, the red-headed annoyance had to destroy the moment. Really – way to go.

What happened next confirmed November's suspicion about an escape-plan, but he was too busy throwing himself and Misaki on the floor to really give it any thought.

Really, he was starting to like that stupid brat less and less and that was saying something, considering that he had wanted to rip the kid apart piece by piece from the beginning.

Sighing deeply the Brit got off the woman he had protected and sat down for a moment. Really, the day had been hell – the single good thing that had happened had been the kiss he had managed to steal from a surprised Shengshun.

His back hurt a lot and now he knew that he was definitely going to need treatment later on. Now he was going to hunt down that little bomb-boy and do what he should have done the first time he had lid eyes on him – freeze him, crush him and feed him to the penguins in a zoo.

*+*+*

Hei was hurting. Really hurting, to the point where he was wondering how it was even possible for him to still be standing.

_Damn pain-killers already wore off._

The burns that marred his skin felt like they were still on fire and every time he took a breath, hot white pain shot through his whole body. Only the thought of finally meeting and destroying Amber kept him going – he was going to find out what happened to Pai, even if it killed him.

Mao had long since left to inform Huang that Amber was the one responsible for the bombings and the assassin was glad that the other Contractor wasn't there to witness his pathetic attempt at speed.

Breathing heavily, he simply concentrated on getting to the shrine, when he noticed a small boy standing in front of him. A pair of mismatched eyes stared at him coolly and Hei cursed his luck when he noticed that the expression was unnatural for a child of that age, which could only mean one thing – the child was a Contractor and probably one of Amber's cronies from the looks of it.

The dark haired man almost wanted to believe that the woman that had betrayed him had set him up, but he knew her well enough to realise that this wasn't something she had planned.

"You are Hei, aren't you?"

The dark expression on the boy's face made him tense and he wondered why no Contractor who knew about his identity as BK-201 was ever pleased to see him.

The answer came to him easily – the only Contractors that saw him were those that he had to kill and any other ones were those that stood in his way and had to be removed.

Seeing that he wasn't going to get an answer, the kid continued to talk.

"Amber always spoke about you. I know what I always felt – IT'S JEALOUSY!"

The child Contractor grabbed a handful of stones at the assassin, who barely managed to avoid them before they exploded.

Hei's eyes widened as he put two and two together – so this was the one who was responsible for his and April's injuries. Great. Now he was fighting with a kid, who was probably going against Amber's orders without weapons or anything else to defend himself with.

He had known that something was going to happen that would make his day even worse.

Stumbling a little, he took cover in the space between a car and a wall, waiting for the boy to make a mistake – which came almost immediately when he stepped into a puddle of water, wetting his shoes and the bottom of his pants.

The boy froze as he obviously remembered whatever Amber had told him about Hei, while the assassin quickly put his hand into the water that reached from the child to the dark haired man and used his ability.

The blonde managed to escape the electricity that shot towards him and it blew out a lantern nearby, and grabbed another stone and flung it beneath the car towards the other Contractor's hiding-place.

The car exploded violently, but the assassin had used the short moment in which the boy had been distracted by his attack, to climb up the wall and drop down to the floor below. He vaguely heard the boy speak, but the noise that still came from the burning car prevented him from understanding whatever was said.

What he heard and understood though, were the words spoken in a voice of the one he had least expected to hear, causing his breath to catch in his throat.

"I forgot to tell you one thing. Good little children should be in bed by this hour."

What was November doing here? Panic started to rise in Hei as he thought about what would happen were the Brit to find him here, with a Contractor that obviously didn't like him at all and who would probably call him 'Hei'.

Not wanting to find out, he carefully moved away from the two other Contractors, not making a sound while he finally continued to walk into Amber's direction.

The assassin was surprised at himself when he felt a slight reluctance when he left, that wanted him to stay where he was in case the MI6 agent needed help, but he ignored that thought – November 11 wasn't the top-agent of the MI6 for nothing and even Hei had had a hard time fighting against him the last time they had met when the assassin had worked as Shinigami.

The blonde was going to be alright, he was sure of that.

*+*+*

November couldn't really believe his luck when July told him that he knew where the brat was that tried to blow them all up and Misaki offered to go with them.

They found the blonde just as a street-lamp blew up and the Brit could see a shadow dart over the wall behind the car that was then blown up by the boy, who was screaming something.

"Amber always, always talked about you. So I can't let you past!"

In that moment something clicked in November's mind and he was surprised that he hadn't seen it earlier.

The one February had called 'Black' in her diary was the elusive BK-201 and Havoc was the one called 'Red' – that was the connection between them.

But hadn't Black been a human? Shrugging to himself the MI6 agent mused that the syndicate member had probably entered a Contract after the disaster in South America – there was nothing strange about that.

For a moment something nagged at his mind as he wondered what could have happened to Black's sister, but he shook it off as not important.

Misaki moved to follow the kid and November hesitated for a moment, wondering if he should interfere and send her after BK-201, but decided not to.

"July, can you follow her and make sure she's alright?"

He turned to look at the Doll standing beside him and smiled gratefully when the younger boy nodded. Gently patting July's shoulder, he watched for a moment as the blonde child followed the woman before he turned around and started to run after the shadow that had disappeared.

It was time to settle his score with the other Contractor – November still had to pay 'Black' back for the scar on his arm.

It took him some time, since it was difficult to move with his injuries, but he managed to do it anyway. When he had finally managed to climb the stairs to the shrine they led to and to which BK-201 had probably gone to, he raised his head and just stared for a moment.

He noticed the red-headed guy that had been annoying him when he had been kidnapped, together with a petite silver haired girl clad in black. Then there was February, who looked a lot younger than he had expected – she looked like a thirteen years old girl now, instead of the twenty-something woman he had last seen her as.

But it wasn't them he looked at.

It was the lean figure of a man standing with his back to him, wearing a white shirt and simple jeans, one arm wrapped around his chest and slightly hunched over as if in pain – almost mesmerized the MI6 agent watched, as the male's dark hair moved slightly in the wind as nobody moved, too surprised by his sudden appearance. The man that seemed surprisingly familiar didn't turn around, but considering the way November was gasping for air and had mad quite some noise trying to climb the stairs, it was safe to say that he knew that someone was behind him.

Not that the way everyone else, who had their faces to him, was staring wasn't clue enough to figure that out.

Just as the Brit opened his mouth to probably say something that he would regret later, the burly red-head started to glow and suddenly the ground between him and the other man exploded, showering the agent in dirt and dust and made him stagger back, almost making him fall down the stairs as he tried to shield his eyes from the onslaught of dirt.

It didn't work very well and, while he managed to keep his footing, his eyes were hit rather hard and it took him some time to be able to see clearly again.

_Damn it, damn it, damn it, damn it,…_

It didn't surprise November in the least that, when he finally managed to see something more that blurred shapes that could have been humans or trees, he was alone.

Muttering curses under his breath, the blonde wondered why everyone he knew and he himself was blown up that day – several times in his case. Was it something in the air, or had every Contractor with the power to explode things in a radius of ten miles suddenly decided that it was 'Blow-Up-November-11-and-his-friends'-day?

Sighing deeply the Brit turned around and made his way down the steps again – really, if a short look at the unmasked BK-201 was all he got, he didn't have to make such an effort when he had followed the other Contractor.

He quickened his steps though, when he remembered that he had sent July and Misaki after that deranged bomb-kid. Maybe he could get there in time to help.

*+*+*

When Misaki had followed the young Contractor, she hadn't really known what she had gotten herself into, but when July stopped her from going in and told her that November had followed the shadow that had disappeared, she felt a little less confident.

She knew that she could handle Contractors – maybe not the most vicious ones, but those that underestimated her for being a normal human had paid dearly for it. Really, shouldn't rationale tell them that she wasn't the head of a section that dealt with Contractors for nothing?

But then she had never claimed to understand how the mind of those who had entered a contract worked.

The woman hesitated for another moment before she entered the building. The boy's voice could be heard from one of the upper stories and from what he was saying it was obvious that he had expected November 11 to be the one after him – which actually caused her to relax a little.

She didn't need water or other fluids, which July said the boy used as a trap. Smiling gently she turned to the blonde boy standing beside her.

"Can you help me with this?"

She wasn't sure what kind of reaction she could expect, but she was glad when the Doll nodded and told her in his usual monotone voice that November had told him to watch out for her.

Misaki thought that it was touching that the boy obviously cared about the older blonde and she could only hope that the Contractor returned those feelings, though she wasn't sure about that.

She knew though, that lately the MI6 members had all changed somehow, from July calling November a friend, April being more patient and November… he had simply gotten all around more emotional and somehow softer. The coldness in his eyes that he had managed to conceal that well had faded over time and she could only guess what – or who – had been the cause of that.

It was a very educated guess, which consisted of a dark haired, dark eyed man in his early twenties, but she really didn't know anything concrete.

Carefully Misaki made her way through the building, July guiding her equally carefully – knowing that one wrong step could kill you was strangely motivating her to be stealthier, which she always had had a problem with.

After several really close calls and a few explosions that almost roasted the two of them, Misaki and July finally managed to get to the room the Doll said the bomber was in. The woman took a deep breath.

She really wasn't sure how to handle what was obviously going to be a fight between her and the Contractor – a Contractor that probably wasn't even in his teens yet.

Shooting an adult that had committed a crime was very different from shooting a child that had committed one, no matter whether or not dozens of people had been endangered and even killed.

She swallowed thickly and gripped the gun in her hands tighter before she nodded at July to trigger the last trap that was in place – it had taken them a lot of time to finally get to this point and she wasn't going to screw it up.

The explosion that followed was almost deafening and when the dust set, she was glad to see that the Doll had been unharmed other than a few scrapes. Misaki forced herself to relax a little – being tense wasn't a bad thing, since it enabled her to be alert, but being too tens would only make her jumpy and she had no desire to actually kill the boy she was going to confront.

The door was opened slowly and when it did, she noticed the stunned look on the boy's face as he realised that she wasn't November 11 and she wasn't dead. Taking advantage of that surprise, she quickly grabbed one of the child's arms and twisted him around while simultaneously pushing him to the floor. Before she could do anything else though, the ground close to them exploded and the woman was thrown off the child, losing her weapon in the process. The boy screamed in pain as he was caught up in the blast and the smell of burning flesh filled the room. Misaki gasped as she landed on the floor, wincing as her back started to hurt due to her hard landing. The gun she had held in her hand was close to the door, almost in the doorway and she moved to get it, when the child's voice distracted her.

"Why? Why you? A useless, weak, being? ARE YOU TAKING ME FOR A FOOL?"

He sounded deranged and the way his face was burned he looked like it too. The woman swallowed thickly as she stared at the boy, who was staring back with an almost crazed look in his eyes.

"I only wanted to get rid of _him_ , don't you understand? It doesn't matter if he's the key! Amber only needs ME and NOBODY ELSE! LEAST OF ALL SOMEONE LIKE HEI!"

With these words, the boy moved to grab something, but before he could do that, a shot rang through the room and the child collapsed onto the floor, red liquid spreading slowly around him and soaking a spot on his back in crimson.

"Well, it seems like I came just in time."

November 11's smug voice filled the room as overwhelmingly as the gun-shot and she stared at him for a moment, not really comprehending what had just happened.

"You killed him." She said slowly.

"Yes, I did. Though I only did it after he gave us the name of our elusive Mr. BK-201." November's voice and gaze was steady and Misaki hated him for it.

She knew that she shouldn't – he was a Contractor, he couldn't help himself, he had saved her life, he was a good friend to July, April and Shengshun, but all she could really think about was that, murderer or not, this boy had never even had the opportunity to experience puberty, he hadn't had a girlfriend yet (though he was considerably obsessed with 'Amber') and it was all she could do to fight back the tears that gathered in her eyes.

November seemed to notice that something was off and walked closer to pat her head.

"Now, now, Misaki. Crying won't do any good. Get up and let's call someone to clean up this mess."

He grabbed her arm and pulled her to her feet as the woman angrily blinked back her tears – she hadn't cried in ages and she was damned if she was going to let something like this break her record.

When she was sure that she had herself under control, she pulled out her cell-phone and called for reinforcements – they should still be in the area considering that another scene was nearby.

Putting her cell back into one of her pockets, she slowly registered what the MI6 agent had said to her earlier. "What do you mean 'we now know BK-201's name'?"

November smirked, realising that she had finally managed to get back her composure, and answered her.

"We all saw the way that street-lamp blew up and the one doing that was probably BK-201. Just now this kid said that he had wanted to prevent _Hei_ from getting to Amber, which means that the name of our illusive phantom is 'Hei'."

Misaki paused when she heard that, slowly saying the name and wondering why it felt strange on her tongue. It was easy to pronounce, that wasn't it, but somehow it felt strange in a way she couldn't describe.

Shaking her head slightly she then asked if November had found anything out, causing him to flinch slightly. Before he answered, he walked to a wall, leant against it and sat on the floor, lighting up a cigarette.

"I got a lot less than you did. I followed him to a small abandoned shrine nearby, but when I got there I only got a short look at the people there. There was February, the red-headed guy that kidnapped me, a silver-haired girl and Hei. Before you ask what he looked like, I warn you that I can't tell you a lot since I only saw his back. He had short black hair, was probably a little shorter than me, thin, he wore a white shirt and light blue jeans. And he seemed to be injured," November added as an afterthought.

"Other than the clothing, it's nothing we didn't know before. Even the injuries aren't surprising if you consider that he fought with another Contractor some time before."

Misaki nodded, but couldn't help feeling frustrated – they had been incredibly close to finding out BK-201's identity if it hadn't been for… Been for what?

"Why did you only get a glimpse of them?"

The Brit looked startled for a moment, having been lost in his own thoughts, before he frowned a little and answered.

"The red haired man blew up the ground in front of me. The dust and dirt got into my eyes and covered their movements and when I could see again, they were gone." He sighed. "It was a waste of time if you ask me."

After that, they waited in silence for other people to arrive.

*+*+*

Hei breathed heavily, one of his arms slung across Yin's shoulders as she was probably the only reason he was still standing. She wasn't strong, but he refused to collapse on her. Gritting his teeth, he wished he could sit or lie down for a moment, but he knew that, would he do that, there was no way he could get up again.

By the time they arrived at his apartment-door, he didn't really realise anymore where he was – the burns were on fire, his ribs ached and his head felt like it would explode any moment.

It took him a while to register that Yin was saying something and it took him even longer to decipher what it was that she wanted.

"Hei. We are here." She had had to repeat it several times until she had gotten the Contractor's attention and that… worried her. The assassin was important to her and she didn't want him to be hurt even more. But what should she do? It was difficult for her to make decisions, especially one that could potentially endanger Hei, but there was no way she would be able to get around doing it.

Mumbling slightly the man told her where he had hidden his reserve-key. Almost sighing in relief, she opened the door and gently led the Contractor into the room, letting the door fall closed behind her.

Equally gently she let Hei lie down on the floor, making sure he was lying on his side to make it easier for him to breathe, before she went to the kitchen-area and filled a glass with water.

Letting the key fall on the floor beside the assassin, she left, making sure that the door was closed and left the building completely.

When she was sure that she was a sufficient distance away, she started to look for her friend. He would be able to tell his team-mate about Hei collapsing in his apartment and she hoped that the Brit, who seemed to care about the dark haired man, would help him.

*+*+*

The clean-up crew had finally managed to come and all November wanted was to lie down somewhere – preferably in the hospital-bed beside Shengshun. Things couldn't go that smoothly however and so he wasn't really surprised when July, who had been waiting outside the building, walked towards him and pulled on his jacket.

"What is it July?" The Doll looked at him with his usual blank expression and answered in his usual monotone voice, so it surprised the older blonde when a flicker of – concern? – flashed across the child's face.

"_He_ needs help." The words were ominous and November felt uneasy when he heard them.

"Who needs help?" Again the expression on July's face was startling as the Doll stared at the Contractor as if the answer to the question should have been obvious.

"Your friend with the sad eyes."

November froze as he heard that and for a moment it felt to him as if everything was silent. "Can you lead me to him?"

The Doll nodded and started to walk towards a police car. The Brit cursed slightly under his breath – Misaki was going to kill him when he brought back the car that he was going to borrow.

*+*+*

The bad feeling November had had, got worse and worse when he realised where July was leading him. The tension he felt caused him to accelerate more and more and the tires screeched when he finally slammed his foot onto the break, halting the car in front of Shengshun's apartment-building.

Jumping out of the car and running up the stairs, he paused for a second in front of the door before he tried to open it.

It was unlocked.

Swearing violently in his head, he almost tripped over something in the darkness around him. Barely managing to catch himself, he searched for a light switch, sighing in relief when he found it. He switched on the light and looked at what he had tripped over – whom he had tripped over. Cursing out loud this time, the MI6 agent fell to his knees and checked if the younger man was still breathing. He was, thankfully, but Shengshun's face was ashen and his breathing irregular.

What on earth was he doing at his apartment? That was all that the blonde thought about while he jumped to his feet and raced down to the place the landlord probably lived at, banging on the door and waiting impatiently.

He had seen at first glance that Shengshun's place didn't have a phone and his own cell-phone wasn't working since he had protected Misaki from the explosion that the two Evening Primrose members had used to escape.

After a few minutes of pounding on the door, it was opened violently and an old woman started to yell at him until she noticed the tattered suit he was wearing.

"I need you to call an ambulance. One of your tenants, Li Shengshun, collapsed in his apartment and needs to get to a hospital ASAP."

The woman started and a worried frown made its way onto her face, but November didn't wait for that, as he sprinted back up the stairs and into the apartment he had left – he hoped that the woman would do what he had asked her to, or he was going to be very upset with her.

He didn't have to worry about that though since, after a few minutes, she came to the apartment herself, the worry still obvious in her eyes.

"What happened to him?"

November had wrapped the younger man in a blanket he had found in a closet and monitored his breathing closely.

"He was caught up in an accident and was injured. The last time I saw him he couldn't even stand and he was in the hospital. I don't know what he is doing here now."

But he would find out – Shengshun would have a lot to explain when he woke up.

"Such a pity. He is such a nice young man, but he has a lot of bad luck, doesn't he? I sometimes see him wearing bandages and he says he gets caught up in strange things quite often." It was all November could do to hold back a snort.

"That's the understatement of the century," he muttered under his breath.

The sound of sirens coming closer made the Brit relax a little and he noticed surprised that Shengshun was wearing a white button-down shirt and blue jeans.

Why did that surprise him? The MI6 agent wondered uneasily. That was what the younger man always wore.

Despite reassuring himself, the nagging feeling he sometimes felt grew stronger.

* * *

Wow. This is the first time that the format and the signs I use for a scene-change actually are the same as in the document I uploaded. Awesome! Anyway, I hope you enjoyed this chapter!

Yours,

TTF


	13. Chapter 13

A/N: Here I am again! Thank you to everyone who read, reviewed, alerted, faved, and simply took a look at it.

I'm happy that there are that many people who like this story. Well, let's get on with it. I hope you enjoy this chapter! If you find mistakes (and I'm sure you will since some of it was written while I was on a writing-roll and that makes me sloppy) please tell me and I'll domy best to fix them!

* * *

Tiredly Hei walked to a new set of guests, hoping that his shift was going to be over soon.

It was a few days after the assassin had been released from the hospital and quite some time after he had been found unconscious in his apartment by November 11, MI6 agent extraordinaire, and he still winced when he remembered the way he had been yelled at by said agent when he had finally regained consciousness after ripping most of his stitches and opening up other wounds. The conversation that they had had after that stuck in his mind more than that, though.

_Glaring at the man lying in the hospital-bed, November 11 crossed his arms._

"_And? What do you have to say for yourself?"_

_Hei knew that he shouldn't show any emotion other than remorse, but a smirk was trying to force its way onto his face as he wondered what the MI6 agent would say were he to tell him that he reminded the assassin of his mother. Forcing his voice to not give away his amusement, the Contractor answered._

"_I'm sorry about that. I was offered the option of going home and since I don't like hospitals I…" Turning his face away from the other man, Hei hoped that the mirth on his face would stay hidden._

_He was lucky and the older man didn't notice, but it was a close call when November leant forward and sighed deeply while patting the assassin's head._

_Again Hei cursed the pain medication he had been given, since it somehow made everything seem hilarious and had almost made him laugh out loud several times in situations in which such a reaction would have been horrible._

"_I guess it's alright since I made you sit through my rant." A small smile was on November's face and without thinking Hei returned it._

_For some reason that made the almost gentle expression on the MI6 agent's face grow serious and he sat down on the edge of the bed._

"_There's something else I want to talk about."_

_Curious, the assassin arched an eyebrow, waiting for the other man to continue._

"_You do remember what I did before I left you in the hospital, don't you?" Hei paused as he tried to remember what had happened. When he did he could feel heat rising in his cheeks as he confirmed that he remembered._

"_What did you think of it?" November's blue eyes were intense and the assassin felt a little uncomfortable with how they bore into his own ones._

"_I don't really know," he admitted. "It didn't feel bad, but it made me realise that I don't really know anything about you Jack."_

_Calling November by his fake-name was a deliberate action and he was curious about how the MI6 agent was going to react to it. Said Contractor winced a little at that, but nodded almost approvingly._

"_Then why don't we get into a semi-relationship? It would give me the opportunity to tell you about me and you'd get the opportunity to get mothered and spoiled by me."_

_Hei arched an eyebrow when he heard that, which caused November to smirk a little. "Don't worry, I'll make sure to keep from taking advantage of you."_

_The assassin was quiet for some time. He had admitted to himself that he was comfortable with the MI6 agent in a way he had rarely, if ever, been with someone else and he was curious about what would happen, were he to agree with the blonde's suggestion._

_On the other hand, it probably wasn't a good idea to fraternize with the enemy, so to speak. November was a high-ranking member of the MI6, while Hei was one of the best assassins that the syndicate had ever had – he was sure that both of their organizations had something to say about any relationship of theirs._

_For some reason the dark haired man could hear Yin's friend's voice in his head, babbling something about 'love between man and elephant' or something like that._

Who of us is the elephant then,_ thought Hei rather helplessly. He knew there was a reason why he always avoided the pink haired girl._

_In the end though, the assassin decided to simply go with the flow and agreed to it, though he asked November to keep it secret until he was more comfortable with the idea._

_The blonde smiled at Hei and the assassin felt guilty – it was true that he didn't really know anything about Brit, but the older man didn't really know Hei either._

Forcing a smile, he took a couple's orders. After that, November had come everyday and had told him a little more about him. How he had grown up in England with his parents, his other, rather crazy relatives, his delinquent years when he was a teen and how he had changed and grown more responsible after his uncle and later his father had died.

Even now that he had gotten out of the hospital, the MI6 agent spent quite a lot of time with him. It reminded the syndicate member a little of the time when the blonde had stalked him, but now he wasn't nearly as annoying – quite the contrary actually, his company was… pleasant.

Of course, he still hadn't been told about the man's job at the MI6 or the fact that he was a Contractor, but he wasn't sure he wanted Li Shengshun to know that – it would make everything more complicated and the assassin had to admit that he enjoyed the simplicity of their meetings and the easy way they could talk to each other.

Physically their relationship had stayed the same, though the distance between them when they walked or sat together was practically nonexistent.

Hei didn't really know why he had asked November to keep his mouth shut when everyone they knew already suspected that they were going out or 'doing the dirty' as April had phrased it when she had tried to ask them about it. Not surprisingly, after such a question neither the blonde, nor the assassin had been even considering telling her about it. Ever since then, she sometimes came alone or with November to 'try and gather evidence', interrupting several rather relaxing moments with her boisterous nature.

It could be said that the lack of progress in Hei's and November's physical relationship could be attributed to the dark-skinned woman, which was something that had put the blonde in a rather bad mood the last few days and even Hei was rather unhappy with the complete and utter lack of progress.

Sighing slightly after taking the orders, he walked to the bar in the club he was currently working at. His shift was going to be over soon and then he would be able to relax a little.

At the moment he was on a job for the syndicate and the reason for this mission was bothersome. One of the syndicate's henchmen had gotten wind of Dolls and he had stolen one from the syndicate's stock hold. He was too important to kill off, since he was next in line for being the boss of a powerful Yakuza group, so Hei was supposed steal back the Doll without letting the man know who did it. The organisation didn't really care about the Doll itself, it only wanted to have the Yakuza under their thumb.

Disposing of the Doll would enable the syndicate to convince the man to use their connections, enabling them to influence him better. Apparently this was a bar that that man often frequented and made his deals in, so the assassin had had to get a job in it.

A loud, sudden voice startled him and probably everyone else in the room and the assassin turned around to watch as the manager and a customer had a loud disagreement over the tab.

Annoyed Hei watched for a while, waiting for someone to stop what was happening, but nobody tried to. The Contractor had a serious headache since he had neglected to take his pain medication that day (something November was going to scold him for later – for some reason the blonde could always tell when he did something like that) and he really wasn't in the mood to listen to two idiots argue.

Just as he started to walk towards them another voice interrupted, telling the brute freeloader to stop harassing people. The man belonging to the voice was a lot less impressive than his words were, Hei could tell. The boy moved like a cocky teenager, hands in his pockets and so completely sure of his invincibility that he never saw the punch coming that made him crash into a table.

Sighing the assassin went to confront the man, knowing that November was going to kill him for this. While he had been released from the hospital, his wounds hadn't fully healed yet and the MI6 agent took every opportunity to remind the younger man of that fact.

Despite the dread he felt for the lecture he was going to get, the assassin knew that this was an excellent opportunity to get close to the man who had stolen the Doll. The boy and the one called Hitotsubashi were in the same Yakuza-group and it wasn't farfetched to assume that they knew each other, when the boy – Sakurai Kenji, or something like that – claimed he was part of the Nakazawa Group and showed up at one of Hitotsubashi's usual haunts.

After he approached the man, the burly man lost his temper and started to attack him. Hei easily dodged every punch that was thrown at him but didn't do anything to attack either. Considering the mood he was in, he would probably take off the man's head and besides that, he needed to keep up the façade of harmless 'couldn't-hurt-a-fly' Li Shengshun – knocking out a guy broader and taller than him and probably trained to fight would make that image go down the drain.

So he simply kept dodging blows, kept his hesitant smile on his face and let the guy crash into what was probably half the store and a quarter of the people there. He really hoped that someone had the bright idea to call security or the police because if they didn't, he was going to have to stage an accident that was going to knock that guy out without making it seem suspicious and Hei really didn't have the patience for that now.

It was just his luck that someone else showed up, someone whom he had been waiting for and who had no idea what the syndicate was planning for him – Hitotsubashi.

What happened next wasn't surprising. The man who had tried to eat and run had been dragged outside and was currently being beaten into a bloody pulp of flesh. That showed again just how different the syndicate for which Hei worked was to organizations like the Nakazawa Group.

The Yakuza simply beat those that angered them up no matter where they were. The syndicate would smile at their enemies and then send an assassin to stab them in the back. The assassin honestly didn't know which method he preferred. On one had did their action make the Nakazawa group rather honest (if such a thing was possible for such an organization) while on the other hand, the syndicate was his means of making a living. Sighing slightly to shake these kinds of thoughts off, he stepped forward to give Kenji a handkerchief soaked in cold water. He knew how much a bruised face hurt and something cold could work wonders.

The boy accepted it gratefully, but before they could start a conversation, a loud voice interrupted them.

"Yoohoo, Sheeengshuun!"

Hei flinched a little when he heard April's voice, but turned and smiled at her despite feeling rather annoyed at the interruption. If she was here to drag him out to drink, he was going to strangle her – only because he could keep up with her when she was drinking didn't make him her drinking-buddy.

The person walking behind her made a smile cross his lips, his eyes taking in the answering smile on the older man's face and November greeted him with an intense look in his eyes, signalling that he wanted to talk to him later on.

"We asked your boss where you are and he told us that you went outside with some rather shady people."

The Brit now stood close beside him and Hei couldn't help but relax a little when he felt the other man's warmth seeping into him.

"Don't worry, they helped me out when a customer didn't want to pay and got rather violent."

November's eyes narrowed as he raised a hand and trailed his fingertips down the younger man's face, letting them linger on the other's yaw and leaning in close to look for injuries in the gloomy light.

"Are you okay? You haven't fully recovered yet. You shouldn't strain yourself." After another sharp look, the Brit continued. "And from what I see you didn't take your pain-killers either, did you? Honestly, you should take better care of yourself. I bet you jumper right into the fight trying to stop it when you shouldn't even be working yet."

The blonde sighed exasperatedly and opened his mouth to say something else, when a bright flash of light interrupted him. Both he and Hei turned to the cause of it and found an innocent looking April standing there. Unfortunately for her, the innocent look was destroyed by the camera she was unsuccessfully trying to shove into one of her pockets.

The two men shared an annoyed look, both knowing exactly what the amber-eyed woman was trying to do.

Ever since Hei had come to the police station to translate what his sister-in-law and her daughter were saying, there had been rumours about the exact relationship between MI6 agent November 11 and the good-natured exchange-student Li Shengshun. The rumours had only grown worse, when someone noticed that the blonde was always visiting the younger male in the hospital while Shengshun was hurt because of the explosion.

Now there was a large betting-pool going on in the police station where people bet whether they were involved in a romantic relationship or not.

Since most people participated in the bet, the reward for finding out was incredible – and April was obviously trying to get it.

Sharing another look and sighing tiredly, the two men stepped away from each other and Hei turned back to the boy who had been watching everything with wide eyes.

"Sorry about the interruption. My name is Li Shengshun and these are friends of mine. Jack Simon and April."

He smiled at the younger one gently and Kenji immediately straightened a little, replying enthusiastically.

"Li-san? So you really are Chinese! My name is Sakurai Kenji and I'm part of the Nakazawa Group!"

The three Contractors could only stare as the boy in front of them started to grin and babble enthusiastically about all the 'bobbing and weaving' Hei had supposedly done. The assassin held back a wince when he noticed the way November glared at him when Kenji excitedly embellished 'Li-san''s actions, making him look like some super-martial artist.

It didn't matter that that was what he was, he just didn't like the fact that he had let his guard down enough for such a kid to catch a glimpse of his abilities. Li Shengshun was a completely harmless and gentle young man – always smiling, always pleasant and never dangerous.

Sighing inwardly the assassin did his best to play down everything that happened.

"I didn't do a lot, really. I was just trying not to get hit."

But apparently those were the wrong words to say, since November's glare hardened even more and the blonde started to look around, searching for the man that had attacked his boyfriend/lover/future-spouse. Hei tensed a little when he noticed what the blonde was doing and he shared a look with April, who had finally managed to put the camera into her bag and who seemed half happy and half anxious about November's reaction. Ever since the Chinese man had been released from the hospital, the blonde had never taken his eyes off him, growing overprotective to a point that sometimes annoyed the assassin.

Not only that, but the MI6 agent was also quite possessive and he really didn't like it when someone tried to harm the younger man – which meant that several people had already gone to the hospital because of frost-bite – to say the least, the Brit's cigarette-intake had increased.

Just when the blonde located the man that had caused all that trouble and who was still being beaten up, a new voice called out and Hei recognised it as the one belonging to Hitotsubashi.

"Kenji!"

As soon as he heard his name being called, the boy (Hei couldn't help but think of him as a child, even though he was probably only a little younger than the assassin) hurried over to the older man, only to get hit on the head.

Hei, who had followed the brown-haired boy, heard April squeal when she saw that and wondered what on earth was squeal-worthy in being hit.

He would never understand that woman and that was probably a good thing for his sanity.

Hitotsubashi warned the kid not to underestimate his opponents (something Hei wholeheartedly agreed with) and then praised the assassin for taking care of his subordinate, giving Kenji some money to take 'Li-san' and his friends out to eat.

The dark haired man barely managed to keep himself from rolling his eyes when he heard how the boy addressed his 'Aniki'.

But at least he had managed to come into contact with the target and had left a good impression, which probably meant that the older man would let his guard down a little when he saw Hei again in the bar where he was working.

Kenji turned to them with a surprisingly bright smile on his face and asked them where they wanted to go to eat. Both April and November turned to Hei, since he had been the one to help the Yakuza-member out and, since he wasn't one to refuse free food (his own living expenses ate a hole into the pockets of his employers), he decided to eat Gyuudon at his usual place.

The other three stared at him – the blonde in knowing amusement, April in disappointment at not getting to eat in a fancy restaurant and Kenji in shock, since he had expected something pricier.

Ignoring the stares, the assassin turned and told them that he was going to get changed, as he walked back to the backdoor of the bar.

November simply told him that they would wait at his car (his new, shiny black sports car that he had gotten since his old one had been blown up in the line of duty – it was black since Shengshun had told him that red was a little too gaudy in the younger man's opinion) and Hei waved, to signal that he understood before vanishing in the building.

He had managed to get into his target's good graces, he had managed to find a potential information-source and he was getting free food – it was no wonder he was the best the syndicate had to offer.

*+*+*

November stared at the boy who was still going on and on about the heroic way Shengshun had saved him and how he would have easily taken care of the guy bothering everyone had his Aniki not shown up. For some reason April started to giggle as soon as he mentioned his boss and Kenji looked at the older man present a little nervously.

November only shrugged and whispered to the younger man that it was probably the best thing not to think about her weird habits too much – he had long since discovered that letting her be weird was the best thing to do.

He led them to his car and when Kenji saw it he immediately started to admire it, causing the blonde to smirk.

_At least he has a good eye for cars._ The Brit let himself be roped into a conversation about cars and bikes and he even told the boy about a motorbike he had had when he had been a teenager.

Soft laughter interrupted their conversation and both of them turned around to face Shengshun, who was smiling at them, now dressed in his usual casual clothes.

"I didn't know you were that old Jack," he teased good-naturedly.

"Don't worry – I'm young in every way that counts."

April chocked a little when she heard the ambiguous answer that November shot back at the younger man, whose smile had transformed into a slight smirk. Ever since they had realised that most people were curious about their relationship (and ever since April sabotaged their attempts to get close to each other), they had started to tease each other a lot, which sometimes ended in a contest of who could be most ambiguous and suggestive.

That had caused most of the females who knew of the bet to create a rather large fan-base of them and most pictures that were of the two of them together sold at a rather high price. April was glad that her two friends didn't know about that, or her health would be in danger.

_If those two aren't together, I thin_ _k I'm going to stop drinking._

Kenji was blushing a little when he realised what the blonde implied and even he wondered about the relationship between the two, before he cleared his throat and said that they should probably start to go since it was already growing light out.

So the three agents piled into the black car (November refused to let April and Shengshun walk or climb on an old vesper when they hadn't fully recovered yet), while Kenji drove his vesper (he didn't want to leave it behind in such a shady part of the town, though November offered to take him to the shop).

In that way, they started to make their way to the Gyuudon-shop that Hei was a regular in.

*+*+*

"Don't you think that the scene earlier was really cute?"

Hei's eyebrow twitched and he already dreaded what April was going to say – somehow he had the feeling that it would warp his mind and he really didn't want that.

"What scene do you mean?"

From the wary tone in November's voice, the older man agreed with him and he contemplated whether sticking his fingers into his ears and singing loudly to tune out the amber-eyed woman's voice would be considered as cowardice or self-defence.

"What scene? The scene where Ken-chan talked with his Aniki! That scene! Even you two can't deny that it was cute how worried the black-haired guy was and how much Kenji adored him!"

Hei could practically feel his mind trying to self-destruct as he tried to see what was 'cute' in the scene they had witnessed.

Both the assassin's brain and he himself failed at their tasks, which was probably a good thing.

"Kenji was hit over the head. With a lot of force. Which looked very painful."

"Yeah, I almost thought that he would get a concussion, but it seems his head is harder than I thought."

November's comment really wasn't productive but Hei couldn't help but smirk when he heard it, since he had thought the exact same thing. Unfortunately April wasn't that amused.

"You guys are horrible! You too Shengshun! Can't you see that the poor boy has a crush on the older guy?"

Her voice was outraged and the assassin rolled his eyes. The only upside to this was that she had finally found someone new to obsess over. That didn't last very long though.

"Can't you two give him some pointers? You two got together and you aren't exactly the sharpest tools in the shed."

November growled warningly. "April…"

"Oh, don't deny it! Everyone knows that you're screwing each other, you might as well admit it!"

The car swerved suddenly, almost crashing into another car when November heard that comment and Hei gripped the expensive leather seat he was sitting on (honestly, how much had that car cost?) tightly, wishing that the dark skinned woman would just shut up.

Thankfully they arrived at the shop then and as soon as the car stopped, the assassin practically leapt out of it and started to walk towards Kenji, who arrived just then.

Somehow it felt awkward to talk to the apparently younger one after hearing everything that April said/saw/imagined, but he ignored his feelings and smiled at the other.

"The Gyuudon here is wonderful and one of the best in town if I may say so."

The boy's eyes brightened when he heard that. "Is that how you got that strong Li-san?"

Feeling even more awkward Hei smiled uncomfortably at Kenji's enthusiasm, glad when November and April finally showed up, the latter looking rather put out.

They went into the shop and while they were walking, November leant in close to the assassin and murmured "I told her not to pester you anymore if she wants her beer-collection to stay intact."

Hei shivered when he felt the older man's breath that close to his ear but smirked when he heard what the blonde was saying. He had been doing that a lot he noticed and somehow got the feeling that the MI6 agents he now spent a lot of time with were a bad influence.

As bad an influence someone could be to a person whose work included killing, maiming, torturing, robbing, stealing and other rather unsavoury things.

_Maybe I'm the bad influence and I just haven't noticed yet._

They sat down at a table and started to order, when April started to talk again.

"Well Kenji-kun, no need to be shy. Be good and tell Aunt April everything about your crush on tall, dark and violent."

The boy chocked when he heard that and Hei revised his thought.

_No_ _. It's not me. It's them. Definitely them._

*+*+*

When Kenji had first seen the Chinese man he now knew as Li Shengshun, he had thought that the slender man was going to be beaten into a bloody pulp by the large Yakuza member he had provoked.

He had been proven wrong when the waiter had evaded every attack sent at him and while he had done it seemingly clumsily, the brown haired boy had seen enough martial arts movies to know that just because something was clumsy, it didn't mean it wasn't effective or dangerous.

He had been surprised and awed at the skill he saw in the dark haired man's movements and he had been looking forward to how the slightly older man would take care of the arrogant, violent bastard that was disturbing the peace around here.

Then his Aniki had shown up and while Kenji was a little disappointed that he hadn't gotten to see Li-san's moves, he had been very happy that his boss had come to his rescue. Then he had met the blue-eyed man's friends and even when he was polite, there was no way to describe them other than 'odd'.

The way they interacted with each other and how they dressed and moved was simply odd.

It made him think that they belonged to some kind of secret crime-fighting organisation and he felt giddy at that thought, wishing he could be a part of that before he remembered that he was part of a Yakuza group and that he was probably one of the criminals they hunted.

Despite that, he couldn't help but like them, even though Simon-san looked like he wanted to devour Li-san every time they looked at each other and though April-san (who somehow didn't seem to have a last name) took pictures of them for some reason or another. They all seemed like they were nice and fun to be around and while Kenji had been told more than once by other people that he was too nice and too naïve and too much of a kid, he prided himself at being a very good judge of character.

So what if he always got into trouble because he talked to people the wrong way? It wasn't his fault that they were too shy to admit that he had seen through them and that he was horrible at keeping his mouth shut, was it?

Well, he had to admit that this could probably one of the few times his instincts had ever been wrong. He had thought that Li-san's friends could be fun to hang out with, but so far the only thing that was going on was April-san asking embarrassing question he either didn't want to think, talk or hear about and the way Li-san and Simon-san winced and shot him sympathetic glances while eating their food made him think that they had probably gone through the same thing, though he was confused as to why Li-san would shoot Simon-san a meaningful look every now and then and why the older man would look sheepish after noticing it.

"Oh, come on! Don't be such a prude! You're with friends here and Jack and Shengshun are a couple in hiding anyway, so don't worry, we'll understand!"

The dark-haired man mentioned chocked on a bite out of his fifteenth beef bowl and the Brit beside him looked rather homicidal while he pounded on the younger man's back, pushing a glass of water into his hand to keep him from suffocating and Kenji somehow had the feeling that the amber-eyed woman was on to something.

The way the blonde hovered concernedly over Li-san and how they were completely comfortable with the lack of personal space between them told more than they probably knew and wanted others to notice.

April smirked while she watched the two men and she was obviously trying to say something when November interrupted her, his cool and smooth voice calmly telling her to shut up if she wanted to keep breathing before he turned to the rather intimidated boy.

"What April is trying to say but is failing spectacularly to convey is, that nobody here is a threat to you and you can talk about anything you want. You can also keep quiet about everything you want so don't let April push you into saying something you don't want to."

For some reason, the blonde's eyes told him _'For your own safety and sanity – keep quiet!'_ but since his self-preservation-sense had never really kicked in and had probably caught and illness, shrivelled up and died somewhere in the deepest, darkest, most distant recesses of his mind several years ago, just after he had been born (if not sooner), he ignored the look and smiled relieved.

"I'm glad you're saying that, since there have been a few things that have bothered me for some time and I didn't know whom to talk to about it."

This time Li-san sent him a look and Kenji was honestly amazed by how much a single look could say, since he could almost hear the sentence in his head.

_Poor fool. Don't worry_ _– I'll notify all your relatives to arrange your funeral when April is finished with you._

It struck him as odd that both of the men reacted that strongly, but since it was impossible to convey words with a look, he put it off as being his imagination.

After all what was the worst thing that could happen?

Later he would wish that he had listened to the voices in his head.

*+*+*

November pitied the poor boy and almost winced when he started to talk about whatever it was that was bothering him. April would use this information against Kenji to make him do her bidding and somehow he got the feeling that it would involve a camera, Shengshun, him and a rather compromising position.

Sighing a little the blonde wished it would happen, only without the audience and the camera.

The last time he had kissed the Chinese man it had been shortly after he had been released from the hospital and while it was a good thing that they got to know each other before they did anything serious, the Brit ached for some kind of more intimate contact.

He hadn't taken as many cold showers as he did now since he had been a teenager – even his subconscious was telling him to get on with it already and this had caused him to be rather short-tempered recently, even though he knew that the only person responsible for this was the one and only April, who was currently gathering blackmail material on another hapless victim.

"What do you think she'll do to him?" Shengshun stared at the boy and woman in front of him with some kind of fascinated horror, even pausing in eating his seventeenth beef bowl and November gently patted the younger man's thigh to comfort him but really only needing an excuse for touching that body-part.

What was another thing that annoyed him was that he was the only one of them who was frustrated by April's interference – either that or Shengshun was one hell of a lot better in hiding his annoyance than the Brit.

The MI6 agent wished it was the latter, but he couldn't tell for sure, which was a serious blow to his self-confidence.

Sighing when he heard what Kenji told April about his girl troubles ("I mean, I'm a nice guy, aren't I? Why do girls always run away from me? It's not like some big frightening guy is always standing behind me, scaring them away.").

For some reason Shengshun paused when he heard that and interrupted the younger man.

"But maybe there is one – literally speaking. You talked a lot about your Aniki, right? And though he is a rather nice man, he seems quite frightening for young females. Maybe it's like that?"

April started to giggle madly again and Kenji scooted away from her, shooting the two other men a nervous look.

November only shrugged, shooting the boy another one of the looks that the brown haired male had ignored earlier.

_It's your own fault. I warned you not to do it._

Kenji blanched a little and the blonde almost felt sympathetic. Only almost though, since he was a firm believer of 'ignorant people reap what they sow – it's only the smart ones that get screwed over by fate'.

*+*+*

Hei pitied the boy who was now under the full onslaught of Hurricane April and he wondered when he had grown comfortable enough with the MI6 agents to tease and insult them. He didn't want to think about it too much though.

It seemed that Kenji had finally learned his lesson and tried to keep his mouth shut, but April still continued to talk.

"Isn't it romantic? He is keeping girls away from you so that he can have you all to himself! That's what I call true love!"

If he didn't fear April's current enthusiasm that much and if he hadn't developed a healthy sense of self-preservation in his time as an assassin, the syndicate member had interrupted the woman quite some time ago and rescued the boy who was paying for their meals from the rather embarrassing conversation.

He could tell that Kenji had never consciously thought of Hitotsubashi that way and that he never actually wanted to do that either, but the amber-eyed MI6 agent didn't leave him a lot of choices, planting ideas in his head and shrewdly explaining to him the wonders of sex between men and the various positions he should try out with his Aniki.

The boy made a strangled noise in his throat when April described a particular position quite graphically and he looked like he was about to either pass out or run from the room screaming bloody murder.

From Kenji's flushed expression and the way his eyes were darting around, looking for an escape-route, Hei guessed that it was the latter the boy was planning to do.

When April started another explanation, the assassin noticed that the hand that still hadn't left his thigh was clenching his leg rather painfully and a look at November's face told him all that he needed to know.

'_Young in every way that counts', eh? I'm not going to sleep with him anytime soon, but I do wish that people would stop interrupting us when we try to get closer._

He found that he missed the kisses he and the older man had exchanged in the hospital a lot but, seeing that both Kenji and November looked bothered by April's descriptive description and how strangely the shop-owner was looking at them the assassin decided that it was time to leave.

He still wanted to come to this place after all.

He put down the now empty Gyuudon bowl and told the others that he was full, interrupting April and causing Kenji to relax a little.

November's hand slid from his thigh and Hei felt coldness seep into the place where he had been touched, wishing that he had kept his mouth shut.

"Let's go then!" April was still enthusiastic and dragged Kenji, who had put the money for the tab on the table, out of the shop.

"We can talk more when we get to Shengshun's! You'll let us come, won't you?"

The look she shot the assassin was rather dangerous and so he agreed to her 'request', hoping inwardly that his neighbours that he had seen drinking this morning had already put away the alcohol they had been drinking.

Dealing with a sober April was already difficult – dealing with a drinking April (he couldn't say drunk since he had managed to avoid seeing that particular phenomenon and in all honesty he wasn't sure it was possible for her to be drunk) was horrible beyond words.

Again they piled into the car while Kenji followed them with his vesper (April had threatened him into following them) and drove towards the assassin's apartment building.

*+*+*

Everybody who lived in the apartment building knew that Li Shengshun was a loner. He rarely interacted with them and his jobs were to such strange hours that it was even rarer to run into him by accident.

He was a quiet man and from what the old landlady was saying, he was also very helpful, orderly and nice ("And you ruffians could at least try a little to be more like him!") but other than that they didn't know a lot about him other than that he had had an accident several weeks back and that a friend of his had called an ambulance for him.

All of them were curious about him since there were several strange things he did and said. For instance, they had once asked him if he wanted them to tone their noise down a little (the landlady had ordered them to ask him), but he had declined, saying that they could be as loud as they wanted and that a little noise made things more lively.

Which was an odd thing to say for a student who was in Japan to study. Was it actually possible to learn something when the rest of them were making such a racket?

The old landlady had asked him that once and Shengshun had replied that he liked the noise – he had grown up with a lot of noise (she didn't need to know that it had been explosions, screams and bombs dropping around him that had caused the noise) and he didn't like it when it was too quiet.

The woman had nodded sympathetically while thinking that this was probably the reason for the odd friends that the student had.

She hadn't really met everyone yet, but she knew the nice blonde man who had called an ambulance for Li when he had collapsed in his apartment. She knew now that the one who had introduced himself as Jack Simon was Li-kun's boyfriend since she had seen the two of them kiss once, late at night the day the student had come back from the hospital.

She had asked her tenant about it and, for once losing his composure and blushing a little, he had asked her to keep it a secret from other people since there was a bet going on at their workplaces whether or not they were a couple and he didn't want to help rumours along.

The woman thought that it was very amusing and hadn't told anyone, though she thought to herself, after witnessing the two men's interaction, that anyone who thought that they weren't a couple had to be blind, deaf, dumb and brain-dead.

It was really sweet how they tried to hide it though, so she didn't say anything.

Nobody needed to know that she had a large library full of BL novels in her cellar.

*+*+*

While he and November were preparing tea (they were trying to avoid April), Kenji looked jumpy and resembled a scared rabbit really closely when the dark skinned woman showed no sign of letting up in her attempts to convince the boy that he was madly in love with his Aniki.

The loud noise that suddenly started was like a godsend to the brown haired young man and he jumped up and ran out of the door to stop the ones making all that noise and annoying Li-san, who didn't get the chance to tell the younger one that he actually liked it.

November was amused and April was annoyed that her attempts at corruption had been interrupted, while Hei dreaded the boy's impulsive reaction and started to follow – he hoped that he wouldn't have to pay for it, before he remembered that Hitotsubashi had given Kenji some money and that he should damn well pay for any damages himself.

Now more relaxed, he arrived at the scene he had somehow expected – a busted in door, baffled neighbours and a surprised Kenji, who had obviously fallen victim to the landlady's broom.

_The boy watches too many Mafia-movies…_

Behind him he could hear April squeal when she saw the beer-cans littered on the floor and the headache that had abated during his Gyuudon meal was starting to make itself noticeable again.

"Who the hell is going to pay for this?" The landlady's annoyed voice told him exactly what he had feared and November patted his shoulder, smirking slightly when he heard that.

Thankfully the rest of the tenants didn't want to pay for anything either and so all of them helped to repair the busted down door. April and November were teasing the boy that he should have a little 'restraint' or his love life was never going to go the way he wanted it to.

The two MI6 agents helped a little too, though there wasn't much to do for that many people.

When they were finally finished, the landlady invited them for lunch and Hei was glad she did. He had just eaten, but free food was always welcome, especially the delicious food that the old woman cooked and he knew that he wouldn't be able to resist that, though he usually avoided his neighbours.

A little later he found himself sandwiched between November and April, who had immediately hit it off with the others and was already joking around with them. November was more reserved, but he had started to talk with the old man about something or other. Hei concentrated on eating the wonderful food laid out in front of him, only distantly hearing what the others talked about.

"Man, Shengshun, how can you eat all that after these twenty Gyuudon-bowls you devoured just before this?"

April's amused voice caught the attention of everyone else and he could see the shock in his neighbours' faces, but ignored it in favour of another bowl of rice.

He was sure that April would be more than happy to tell everyone else all they wanted to know about him.

*+*+*

Kenji stared at the mountain of food beside Li-san in awe.

"Is that how you got that strong Li-san? Come on, tell me! It's not fair to hog all the wisdom of martial arts to yourself!"

Said man almost chocked on his rice (for the second time that day), but managed to swallow properly in the end.

"I'm telling you that's not it…"

Kenji ignored the protest of the older man and happily told the rest of the people there how Li-san had heroically challenged a violent customer and how he had evaded every attack and how it was disappointing that his Aniki had come that soon, since he had wanted to see how Shengshun took care of the big brute.

The one they were talking about sighed, while the rest listened with surprise ("I can't believe that someone as skinny as him could do something like that…" - Rocker) and pleasure ("I always knew that he is a fine young man." - landlady).

"That's all fine and well, what with the secrets to his power, but I'm more interested in how you can stay that thin with all the food you eat!" April interrupted Kenji's story and stared fascinated at the assassin, who finally paused.

"I just have a high metabolism. That's all there is to it."

November snorted a little. "That and the energy you need to heal the injuries you always manage to get."

"What injuries?" The orange-haired woman sitting beside Kenji asked curiously. Hei sighed annoyed and glared at November, who cheerfully told her about the time when the Chinese man had been stabbed in a mugging, hurt his hands when something blew up on him, had been blown up himself now had almost gotten himself hurt again in a bar-fight.

April was smirking and cheerfully added her opinion of everything to it.

"I bet you're just getting hurt so Jack can mother you. Right Shen-chan?"

The assassin was now seriously annoyed, but he smiled back sweetly and retaliated.

"Says the one who was in the hospital for a lot longer than me and as a chain-smoker you really shouldn't talk about others' injuries Jack."

November just smirked and gently picked a grain of rice off the younger man's face that had stuck there and put it in his mouth.

"Says the one who eats like a kid."

Hei could feel a smirk tug on his lips, but refused to give in to it – he loved bickering with the MI6 agent like this.

"So you finally admit that, compared to you I'm young."

"I already told you didn't I? I may be an old man but I'm young in every way that counts."

April was snickering at the stunned looks that everyone else gave the two men – it was always hilarious to witness.

"Oh, so you have to repeat yourself now. Do you do that to remind yourself of it since you can't prove it, or are you incapable of coming up with something new at your old age?"

The landlady stared when she heard that, but she relaxed when she noticed the teasing smile on her tenant's face.

"Do you want me to prove it to you?"

November had lowered his voice, giving it an almost husky quality, his eyes were half-lidded and he leant dangerously close to the younger man, their faces almost touching.

"Can you? I imagine that it must be quite difficult to do so." Hei too had lowered his voice until it was a gentle murmur and he tilted his head a little, barely managing to keep from laughing when he saw himself reflected in the older one's icy blue eyes.

"Alright, enough of this, you're going to give Ken-chan a heart-attack if you keep this up!"

April's voice cut through the rather charged atmosphere, while the rest of the onlookers groaned in disappointment.

"But it was just getting interesting!" The burly blonde men from Israel protested and the others agreed.

Hei finally retreated and pressed his hand over his mouth, trying to keep his laughter in, when he caught sight of the clock.

"Damn it, I have to go. I have to meet with some work colleagues." He had a meeting with Huang and Mao to discuss what they would do next. He also had to inform them that Hitotsubashi had shown up at his job and that he had a feeling that their real work would begin soon.

"Already?" November looked disappointed, but the assassin didn't have a choice.

"Yes, but it shouldn't take long." He thanked the landlady for the meal and excused himself from his company. The blonde beside him got on his feet and followed him, telling the rest that he would be back soon. Both males went outside and went up the stairs to Hei's apartment where the younger man dressed in his usual green jacket and took an umbrella out of a closet.

When he was ready to go, he smiled at the older one and told him that he could stay in his apartment until the assassin got back.

November nodded, took a look at the door to make sure that it was closed and then pulled the dark haired man into a kiss.

The Brit had intended to keep it short and chaste, but it had been such a long time since he had gotten the opportunity to kiss the younger one that it grew more and more passionate, tongues sliding against each other, teeth clicking and lips pressing together with almost bruising force.

Hei had already let go of the umbrella and was running his hands through the blonde's hair, while November had his arms wrapped tightly around the assassin's waist.

They parted only reluctantly, the Brit trying to prolong it again and again until the younger man pushed him away, panting slightly and blushing heavily.

"I really have to go or they'll have my head."

November scowled at that but slowly let go, only leaning in for a short peck before he retreated several steps, not trusting himself to let the younger man go otherwise.

Hei smiled at the older one, picking up the umbrella from the floor and left after waving goodbye.

November sighed deeply and tried to get his mussed hair in order again.

"I really need a cold shower."

*+*+*

As soon as he was outside Hei opened the umbrella and a black cat jumped onto his shoulder, searching for warmth and a dry place.

"You shouldn't get too involved with that guy."

Mao sounded almost concerned and that was the only reason the assassin didn't shake the wet mass of fur off of his shoulder.

"It's a little too late for that warning." The cat sighed, as if it had expected that answer and replied accordingly.

"That's what I thought. I'm not going to tell anyone about this since I value my life and the Syndicate would probably be very unhappy was it to find out about your relationship with that MI6 guy, but you'll have to pay me off."

Hei rolled his eyes at the suddenly smug tone in Mao's voice.

"Let me guess – food, milk and backrubs?"

"You got it in one, but another thing I want you to do is to introduce me to the crazy white-haired woman."

The assassin almost tripped when he heard that and a rather disturbing picture burned itself into his retinas, which made him decide that he had spent way too much time with April and Yin (who had been influenced by that pink girl).

"… I don't think that she is a fan of these kinds of things Mao…"

This time it was the cat's turn to almost fall of the assassin's shoulder and he barely managed to hold on with his claws, which caused Hei to wince a little when they dug deep into his shoulder.

"Not because of that!" The man turned cat sounded horrified. "I've been in an animal's body for such a long time that I can't imagine being with a woman anymore. I want to meet her because she has a lot of dirt on you and your boyfriend and if I can get close to her, maybe I can find out several things and learn a few tricks."

Hei glared at the street in front of him before he replied.

"Stalker."

The rest of the way was spent listening to Mao's protests and denials of that title.

*+*+*

Disappointed April took a look around the room. She was the only one still conscious and watching the others sleep wasn't something she liked to do.

Kenji had tried to drive home earlier, but his vesper had given out on him, so he had spent the last few hours trying to fix the old thing.

November hadn't come back after he had left with Hei and, hadn't she seen that his new and beloved car was still where they had left it, she would have thought that he had left with the younger man.

As it was, she suspected that he was waiting for Shengshun in the Chinese man's apartment and she considered going up to him and waiting with him, but then decided that she liked her life too much to actually do that.

She knew that she had been very obnoxious these last few weeks, but who could blame her?

She had been stuck in a hospital bed for several weeks and November and July simply weren't enough company for the usually energetic and social Contractor. Because of that, she had had to make up for lost time and was it her fault that her favourite targets were November and Shengshun?

Despite all her teasing and interrupting she was genuinely happy for her friend and team-mate. She hadn't seen him that content and happy since before he had become a Contractor and it was easy to tell just how much he cared about the younger man.

The only thing she couldn't tell was what Shengshun felt for November. She knew that he had to care at least a little, or else he wouldn't have stuck around for such a long time and he wouldn't tease her team-mate back when they started another one of their innuendo-sessions, but she didn't know how much the dark haired man cared about her friend and she didn't want them to be hurt when they found out that it wouldn't work between them.

Sighing a little she smirked when she remembered how the tenants of this place had complained that Shengshun was usually such a cold man and how they had been surprised that he could be that playful.

They had asked why he was that reserved when he talked to them, which had caused her to tell them about the time when Jack had stalked the poor student and had tried to drive him up the wall and how they had gotten closer only because of November's single-minded determination.

One story had run into the next and she had ended up telling everyone about the trouble-magnet that was Li Shengshun, together with his partner in crime Jack Simon.

She had been ecstatic when all of them had agreed to help her find evidence that the two men were dating and because of that she had given away all her throw-away-cameras, promising the one to take the right picture part of the profit.

Cackling evilly, she decided to take a nap too and lay on the floor, making herself comfortable before falling asleep.

*+*+*

As promised Mao hadn't said anything about Hei's relationship with November 11 to Huang, though the older man had been able to tell that there was something he hadn't been told. He had let it slide though, obviously not wanting to have anything to do with whatever was going on between the two Contractors.

They had finished the meeting without any problems and while Mao had talked about Kenji, Hei would make sure that the boy wouldn't be a problem, so none of them had been too worried.

Now he was back at his apartment building and the kid they had talked about was still there, apparently repairing something or other at his bike.

The young man had just finished and now rolled his vesper to the street when he noticed Hei standing there.

"Li-san, welcome back!"

"You're leaving already?" Kenji smiled at the question and answered.

"Yeah, the others already drank themselves to sleep and I had to repair my bike. Thank you for sheltering me from the rain. I'll see you sometime again!"

Smiling Hei watched as the younger man vanished from his sight. He couldn't help but like the boy, even though he was too much of a kid for the assassin to feel really comfortable with him.

Growing serious, he reminded himself that, like or not, he would have to get rid of Kenji should he prove himself to be an obstacle to the syndicate's plans. Gritting his teeth at the dull ache that thought brought, he refused to let himself think that he would have to do the same thing to November should the need arise.

Slowly the assassin walked back to his apartment, glad that he would have at least a little respite until he would have to work again that night. These all-nighters he had been pulling these past few weeks had been draining and Hei wished that the Yakuza would hurry up and get on with their deals so that he could steal the Doll and go back to his usual life.

It was a bad thing to do, but he was growing more and more annoyed with the syndicate and the jobs it gave him. He had been in the organisation for such a long time that he had long since stopped wondering about its motives, but slowly he couldn't help but ask himself what the point of some of the missions he got was.

Hei opened the door to his room and arched an eyebrow at the sight that greeted him, a reluctant smile forming on his face.

November was lying sprawled out on the assassin's futon (which he had probably set up while Hei had been gone) only wearing his violet dress-shirt and cream pants. His jacket, tie, belt and his west lay in an untidy heap beside the futon. The Brit was sound asleep, one of the dark haired man's books lying open on the blonde's stomach.

It was obvious that the MI6 agent had fallen asleep while waiting for the younger man and the assassin smirked, knowing that he now had new ammunition with which he could tease the older man.

He shrugged out of his jacket and put away his shoes, careful not to make a sound that could wake the older one up.

He had never seen November sleep, so this was something of a novel experience for the assassin as he carefully sat beside the Brit, studying the other's relaxed expression. He reached up and gently brushed a strand of soft, blonde hair out of the MI6 agent's face when suddenly the apparently sleeping man's eyes opened and a smug expression relieved the relaxed one.

"You weren't asleep," Hei observed half surprised half amused.

"Exactly." November sounded as satisfied as he looked while he patted the space beside him. The assassin took the unspoken offer and lay down next to the older one, slowly relaxing against the other's warm body.

"I have to go to work soon." Hei was already starting to get drowsy and the way the older man was running one of his hands through his hair wasn't helping either.

"Don't worry, I'll wake you when you have to go." November's low voice was the last thing he heard before sleep took him.

*+*+*

Amused November looked at the younger man, who had fallen asleep already. Shengshun must have been more exhausted than he had looked to simply doze off like that, but then again, it had been almost 24 hours since the student had last slept.

Gently he continued to run his had through the unbelievably soft hair of his lover, smiling amused when the younger one sighed contentedly in his sleep.

The Brit had to remind himself that, no matter how much the dark haired man resembled a feline sometimes, he still didn't have the voice-chords to purr – even though it looked like such a sound would come from the sleeping one any second now.

Keeping one eye on his watch, the MI6 agent started to relax while he watched Shengshun sleep. Even in his sleep something seemed to be troubling the younger male and November would pay to know what was going on in that pretty little head of the dark haired man.

Ignoring that thought for now he contented himself with watching.

*+*+*

When Kenji met his boss that day it was impossible for him to look the older man properly in the eye, images of April's descriptions running through his mind and the boy didn't know whether to cry or laugh hysterically.

He knew he had to do something, though, since Hitotsubashi had been giving him strange looks all evening. It could have something to do with the 'delivery' that was supposed to happen that evening and with the 'something' Kenji was supposed to do for the Group later, but the young man wasn't really sure about that.

He gripped the glass in his hand a little tighter and cursed his own innocent and impressionable mind before deciding that all of this was April's fault and he should curse her instead.

He had never felt that awkward around his Aniki ever since they had met a few years ago when everything had been easier.

Hitotsubashi hadn't been a high-ranking Yakuza then and Kenji's only real problem had been his drunkard of a father. Now he had to deal with the whole Yakuza-situation (he was starting to think that he wasn't cut out for this kind of business) and the fleas that the dark skinned woman, who had done her best to traumatise him, had put into his head.

"Kenji." His Aniki's voice ripped him out of his thoughts and the boy did his best to keep from blushing, though he had the feeling that he was failing spectacularly at it.

The older man paused for a moment before he asked curiously what was going on with the younger one.

Hitotsubashi had wanted to talk to Kenji about his plans concerning the Group, but the way the boy had jumped when he had been questioned made him curious.

"Did something happen earlier with that guy and his friends?"

Kenji turned a bright red and shifted uncomfortably.

"Li-san and Simon-san were very kind – it's just April-san who made a few strange comments…" This would mean more to the black haired man would he know who of the three he had met earlier was who, but he supposed that it didn't really matter.

"And what kinds of comments?"

Hitotsubashi was always amused when he noticed how easily embarrassed the boy in front of him was and from the looks of it, someone else thought the same thing if he read Kenji's inability to meet his eyes meant what he thought.

Immediately the boy started to fidget and stammer and the older man saw a shade of red he hadn't even known could exist on something other than fire-hydrants.

"Th-that's… I mean… April-san said… it was… uhm…"

The black haired man smirked a little and ignored the fondness he felt when he noticed that, other than the bleached hair, the kid hadn't changed at all from when they had first met.

"It's okay if you don't want to tell me. There's something else I have to talk to you about anyway."

Hitotsubashi only hoped that Kenji would stay that way even after taking care of the Doll.

*+*+*

Kenji gasped for breath, almost stumbling in the dark as he pulled the girl he had met that day with him, praying that nobody would notice them in the dark and in this part of the town – at least until they arrived at his vesper.

He couldn't believe what he had done just then. He had betrayed his Aniki, he had betrayed the Group, he had injured the owner of the bar, he had practically kidnapped the girl he was now running through the city with.

_What am I going to do now?_

Panic was rising in his throat and only the warmth of the small hand in his own prevented him from losing his composure completely – that and the knowledge that he was doing the right thing. Had he left this 'Doll' in his boss' grasp, she would have been sold to some old pervert and would probably have had to live the rest of her life in some kind of hell.

It was shocking to him that his Aniki could be that cruel to someone – what he had tried to do was human trafficking and Kenji felt disgusted that he should have helped in doing something like this.

Where should he go now though? Aniki knew where he lived and everyone he knew was a Yakuza or knew someone who was one and he doubted that anyone of them would be very happy were he to show up at their doorstep with a half-naked girl and trouble with the group hot on his heels.

Wasn't there someone he could turn to? Kenji almost stopped dead in his tracks when he remembered that there was someone who didn't have anything to do with the Yakuza and Hitotsubashi didn't know where they lived, so it should be relatively safe too.

Gripping the hand in his tighter he hoped that Li-san wouldn't be too angry with him for showing up that unexpectedly.

*+*+*

Hei had always had the feeling that the universe hated him, but until now he hadn't had concrete proof. He still didn't, but at least now he felt that his paranoia was justified.

Why, just why was it always him who got caught up in these kinds of things?

And why did everyone automatically assume that he would help them out of the goodness of his heart when he was one of the most dangerous men currently alive?

Betraying the syndicate once was one thing and the people he had helped had been family once, but this? This was ridiculous.

Taking a deep breath and hoping that nobody had noticed the boy and the Doll now sitting in his room the assassin prepared himself for another several exhausting days.

* * *

That's it for today. Thanks for reading and I hope you enjoyed it!

Yours,

TTF


	14. Chapter 14

A/N.: H!^^

I hurried up for this chapter because this is my present to all of you who've stuck with this story until now. Though I doubt you'll be happy with me after you read this...

Well, Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year in case my next update is next year!

* * *

Kenji felt like a child when he looked at Li-san's hard expression. He was slowly coming to regret coming to this place, despite knowing that it had been his only option.

He just hadn't thought that the kind and gentle Chinese man could be that harsh and cold – and knowledgeable about what his Aniki had called 'Doll'.

From the expression on the older man's face he could tell that he had really, truly screwed up this time and he didn't know what to do now. The only thing he knew was that he didn't want to leave the girl he had saved on her own.

This was probably the only good and noteworthy deed he had done ever since he had been born and he didn't want to ruin that. He also didn't want to break the promise he had made with this girl. He had told her that he would get her out of everything unharmed and, while she hadn't reacted to him yet, he somehow got the feeling that she understood and appreciated that.

When he had been younger, his Aniki had sometimes playfully compared him to an animal – no common sense, but sharp instincts about people. It had always annoyed him, but now he had to admit that maybe Hitotsubashi had been on to something.

A sharp, stinging pain in his chest reminded him that the black haired man he had known for such a long time would probably never talk to him like that again.

"You are a fool."

Li-san's empty voice and the disappointment and fury he saw in the older one's eyes were somehow worse than had he been yelled at.

It also made him wonder if the Chinese man suffered from schizophrenia or some other kind of disorder – was it possible for a normal, _sane_ human being to change characters that drastically?

Kenji tried to defend his decision, but somehow failed horribly and could only flinch when the older man walked out on him and the girl, slamming the door shut behind him.

_That went well._

Was it normal to develop a cynical voice in his head that told him how idiotic he was? He didn't think so, but then again, he had just found out that there were many things he didn't know, even though he had thought he did.

Like his Aniki being a human trafficker for instance.

*+*+*

Taking a deep breath Hei resisted the urge to beat his head against the wall of his apartment building until he passed out, but he figured that he would have to clean up the blood and repair the wall when he woke up again and as such it wasn't worth the effort. Taking another breath he wondered what he should do now, but then thought that he had probably made his decision already when he had first seen Kenji and the Doll in front of his door.

_Damn my weakness for children._ He stomped down the stairs and hoped that Mao had stopped stalking him for today – he doubted it, but one could hope.

If Huang found out about this, the former cop was going to murder him – he knew that the older man was starting to be sick of all the trouble Hei had gotten into lately and the assassin couldn't really blame him.

He had been hurt more than once and it had been an inconvenience to the whole team and, as the one who was mostly in contact with the syndicate's messengers, the short man had been getting all the heat from the higher-ups.

Sighing and cursing himself, Kenji, Hitotsubashi and the world in general Hei walked into the direction of the mall – the Doll needed new clothes if they wanted to flee properly.

*+*+*

When Misaki had slowly realised that the relationship between Shengshun and November was more romantic in nature than she had originally thought, she had felt quite hurt by it and couldn't really fathom why.

She had then called her friend Kanami and had told her about her feelings and the situation with Li-kun. Her friend had told her that most men who were nice and good and attractive and would make great fathers were either gay or taken and it was about time that Misaki found out about that.

That hadn't helped her at all and it was only reluctantly that she agreed to go shopping with the other woman after that comment, mostly because she wanted to go over the information that the Astronomical Observatory had managed to gathered.

What she hadn't expected was to see Li-kun in the lingerie-section of a shop for women and, surprised, she went inside to talk to him.

The younger man was as polite as always, though he seemed to find it a little awkward to talk to her while holding a bra and she agreed that they could have met under better circumstances.

That was the moment Kanami interrupted, took one look at the Chinese man, realised to whom she was talking and started to smirk knowingly.

She reminded Misaki of a shark and from the way Shengshun swallowed rather nervously he seemed to agree with her impression.

"So you're Li Shengshun-kun. I've heard about you." The Chinese man almost took several steps back from the predator in front of him, but barely stopped himself.

"I… see…"

Deciding that to let Kanami torture her younger friend would be unnecessarily cruel, the Section Chief of Division 4 intervened and asked what the dark haired man was doing in such a shop. She had been wondering ever since she had seen him here and somehow she doubted that he had a girlfriend when he and November were that obviously in love with each other (though, being utterly oblivious, it wouldn't surprise her were they still in denial about it).

Shengshun answered that he was looking for female clothes, a wig and several other items and Kanami offered to help him look for the right things.

The student hesitated, but decided that a woman's input would definitely be helpful (especially when he had no idea what to really buy) and so the two women helped the younger man to buy what he needed.

At the end of everything, Misaki couldn't help but ask the question that had plagued her ever since she had seen Shengshun and, being as curious as she was, she couldn't hold back the question any longer.

"You aren't going to use this to dress up for Jack, are you?"

The dark haired man gaped at her in disbelief, horror clearly visible on his face as the bags he had held in his hands dropped down to the floor.

The expression on his face was comical as he denied the question stammering.

"A… f-friend asked me to…"

Kanami arched an eyebrow amusedly as she ran her eyes up and down the younger man's body.

"For what it's worth, I think you would make a rather stunning woman Li-kun." It was obvious that she relished the blush and the complete loss of composure of the younger one – who wished that the floor would open up beneath him.

Misaki tried to imagine what Shengshun would look like dressed as a woman and was surprised that the thought amused her quite a bit. Her friend was right, the Shengshun she had in her head dressed as a woman would look quite beautiful, especially in a long dark blue dress that would show off those collarbones-

The brown haired woman cut off that thought and wondered where it had come from – she didn't usually imagine what guys would look like in drag so this was a little unsettling to her.

"If you aren't busy, come to my place sometime, I'm sure that I have something there that would fit you…"

Again the Chinese man blushed under her speculative gaze as he gathered up the bags he had dropped.

"Thank you for your… invitation. I'll…think… about it…"

Meaning that he had no intention of ever going with her willingly and he would defend himself from her if it was necessary to escape her evil clutches.

Lips twitching in reluctant amusement, Misaki wondered why she suddenly felt better when she watched Li-kun retreat as fast as possible without it seeming impolite.

*+*+*

Hei glowered while he walked to his apartment building, wishing he had never interfered in the fight at the bar the day before. If he hadn't, he wouldn't have had to help Kenji and he wouldn't have run into Misaki-san and her friend and he wouldn't have had to deal with that friend, who had apparently heard of the rumours concerning Hei and November.

The assassin wished that he could strangle the one who had started these rumours and if not strangle, then at least electrocute them a little.

_Not that it's possible to electrocute someone 'a little', but it's the thought that counts in court…_

Finally arriving back at the building the assassin steeled himself before opening the door.

He was greeted with, not silence as he had expected, but Kenji's voice, talking to someone gently.

For a moment he thought that the boy was talking to the Doll, but when he noticed the other sound that was audible he realised with whom the former Yakuza was talking.

As expected, when he went further into the room, he saw Kenji holding and petting a very satisfied looking Mao in his arms.

Hei could already feel a headache building in his temples.

It seemed that he had made some kind of annoyed noise, since both the other syndicate member and the Yakuza jumped surprised (the Doll didn't react at all) and turned towards him, both with a guilty look on their faces.

Kenji because he was still intruding on Hei's privacy and Mao because he knew that Hei didn't appreciate him stalking the assassin.

_That damn cat has too much free-time._

"You're back, Li-san.

Hei held back a snappy reply. He really didn't want to waste time arguing with someone whom he was going to help anyway when time was crucial in getting the two out of the city.

"Here are clothes. You'll have to dress her in them if you don't want to attract attention."

He could see that Kenji was surprised and grateful but the boy started to protest vehemently, blushing slightly at that thought.

"What? Do you want me to do it?" Annoyed the assassin glared at the brown haired male and he could feel his eye start to twitch when he heard the embarrassed answer.

"Well, you and November are an item, so you probably aren't interested in her that way, so you could…"

One of Hei's hands balled into a fist and he desperately held himself back from copying Hitotsubashi the day before.

_Finding out just how hard his head is and how much damage it can take is getting more and more_ _ tempting…_

Maybe he should do something about his sometimes rather homicidal imagination and urges, but then decided that it was too good a stress-reliever to give up.

He was just opening his mouth to say something rather rude and crude but was interrupted by the door opening suddenly and a warm body crashing into his back and causing him to crash into the floor.

April's voice was cheerful and happy, but Hei didn't hear what she said – he was too busy trying to breathe and cursing at the woman currently trying to crush him.

"That's enough April. Both of you haven't fully recovered yet and you trying to break Shengshun's ribs again isn't helping."

Pouting the dark skinned woman climbed off the man she had been trying to suffocate who as soon as he had recovered enough, started to protest, "My ribs weren't broken. They were only cracked."

November stared at the younger man coolly.

"Which is so much better, isn't it?"

Hei glared at the older one before he realised that having them over when he was trying to hide a Yakuza on the run and a Doll which should have been sold off by now, wasn't a good idea, so he tried to subtly throw them out.

"This isn't a good time. Could you come back later? I'm in the middle of something…"

Unfortunately he should have known that that would only pique the other Contractors' curiosity and both of them started to badger him about what was going on.

That was when they noticed Kenji, who had been standing in the room uncomfortably and Hei hated that little brat right now, since all three MI6 agents (July had come with the two) were now going to get involved with the whole situation.

"Ken-chan is here! Shengshun, you aren't thinking of cheating on Jack, are you?"

April smirked at the assassin and, again, the dark haired man wished he could strangle her, before he decided that being angry all the time would just lead to high blood-pressure and would result in a heart-attack when he was older (if he was older, considering what his job was).

Ignoring the question Hei asked if April could do him a favour, which caused the rest of the room to stare at him incredulously.

"Er… sure, what do you want?" Even the amber eyed woman was baffled by such a question and she agreed to it without thinking.

"Kenji's friend needs a change of clothes and since you are a woman you would be the best for this job."

The assassin readied himself for another annoying joke, but to his surprise, April simply nodded and grabbed the bags he handed to her.

It made him feel an almost overwhelming amount of paranoia and while he dragged the rest of them out of the door to give the two females enough privacy (Mao too, who had been watching everything curiously), he wondered what the devious woman was up to now.

"Don't worry about it too much Shengshun. Sometimes she is really docile for no reason at all. She says it's to keep people around her on their toes."

November was calm and Hei relaxed a little, reassured by these words. He glared at Mao when the Contractor made a snorting sound, grabbed him by the back of his neck and threw him over the railing.

Kenji gasped in surprise and horror and practically leapt down the stairs to see if the cat had survived the fall.

The assassin scoffed a little at that – if it were that easy to get rid of that annoying parasite Mao would have kicked the bucket ages ago (courtesy of Huang's bad temper and general hate of Contractors and Hei's annoyance caused by being stalked by the man-turned-animal).

"You're strange today. What happened?" As always November was perceptive of the dark haired man's moods and Hei relaxed against the older man, who had sat down beside him.

"It's nothing you need to worry about. I'll take care of everything." That did nothing to reassure the MI6 agent – if anything it just made him more anxious.

"I am worried, especially when you say it like this. Now I know something is going on and you won't tell me what it is."

The assassin sighed and buried his face in the blonde's neck. He didn't want to talk about this now, when he was comfortably resting against November and Kenji and Mao and _April_ were gone for the moment.

July was sitting some distance away and wouldn't bother them unless something came up and he also wouldn't blab about something he shouldn't to people who were needlessly curious.

That was before the door to Hei's apartment was opened violently and April stood there wearing an uncharacteristically serious expression on her face. She didn't even comment on the way the two men were obviously leaning against each other intimately (there was no way that the assassin was ever going to admit that they had been cuddling).

"Jack, there's something you need to look at. You too July."

November arched an eyebrow and untangled himself from the younger man, stepping into the room and closing the door behind him and the small boy following him.

Hei knew what they were going to talk about, had known he couldn't hide the Doll from the MI6 agents as soon as they had stepped foot into his apartment, but that didn't mean he wasn't nervous.

Just then Kenji walked back up the stairs with Mao cradled against him securely. He was glaring at the older man and muttering something about 'animal cruelty' under his breath but the assassin ignored that.

"Where are Jack and the kid?"

"April wanted to talk to them," was Hei's short answer and the brown haired boy sat down beside him.

"I hope she's okay," Kenji muttered under his breath after a short time of silence, petting Mao who looked quite happy with that treatment.

"How are you going to take care of her?"

The assassin had returned to speaking in monotone and the younger man shivered a little, unconsciously petting the cat in his lap a little harder.

"I… I don't know, but I'll do it somehow."

The boy sounded determined, but Hei doubted that he would be able to live up to his words. He, more than anyone, knew what kind of place the world was and it definitely wasn't a nice one.

A boy barely out of his teens without any working-experience other than some time with the mob, with an attitude that was unhelpful when dealing with so-called 'upstanding citizens' and way to naïve to know about the world.

_He reminds me of myself._

The bitter thought that came to the assassin was a surprise to him, but when he thought about it, it was true.

When his older brother had thrown him and Pai out he had thought that he would be able to somehow take care of his sister and himself, but he had been wrong.

Things had only gotten worse and they had both lost whatever innocence they had managed to salvage after leaving their mother.

Whenever he recalled these stupidly enthusiastic thoughts he loathed how naïve he had been then. He had honestly, truly thought that he could somehow manage, but where had that gotten him?

He had lost his sister, he had ended up as an assassin, his sister was either dead or missing and he was about as emotionally stable as an earthquake area.

"You will probably have to live your whole life fearing an attack, having to be ready to move on at a moments notice. You can't afford to get close to anyone because they could find out about her and you'll have to change names several times."  
"I… I'm ready for something like that."

Hei wanted to beat some sense into the boy but he had the feeling that it would be a lost cause so he spared himself the effort. There was no way anyone who had lived a semi-normal life (even though it was a rather criminal one) could be prepared for something like that.

"What will you do for money? Where are you going to stay? What will you do with her while you work? Doing this alone is impossible."

Kenji started to fidget and it was obvious that he was thinking about what Hei had said, but the resolve in his eyes was the same.

"I'll think of something. I'll do something to make it work. I definitely will take care of her."

"Why her? Why someone who doesn't react to your presence? You can't have known her for more than a few hours."

The assassin had wanted to ask why he would choose someone without thoughts or will or emotions, but his own experiences with Yin kept him from asking such a thing.

Dolls weren't completely emotionless, they weren't completely without a free will and they were capable of thought, no matter how much the opposite seemed to be true.

Kenji's answer was delayed by the orange-haired woman he had eating with the day before and the boy struck up a short conversation with the woman after pushing Mao off his lap and onto the cold floor. Mao immediately climbed into Hei's lap, who ignored him in favour of listening to the two people talk.

"Do you know why Irene is in Japan Li-san?" The youth's voice was soft when he said that and the assassin lowered his head a little.

"She is earning money for her siblings back home. She wants to give them a chance for an education. "

"That's different. She is working for her family, her own blood. Even if she worked for friends it would be different from what you are doing. You are throwing away your whole life because of a stranger that hasn't even said a word to you."

"I don't think I'm throwing away my whole life. This is probably the nicest thing I've ever done and I can't bring myself to regret saving her. You know, people always told me that I was too nice for the job of a Yakuza and they were probably right. Li-san what would you have done in my situation?"

Hei kept his head lowered, string at the floor in front of him with a look that dark and anguished that it made Mao wince when he saw it.

"I would have left her there. I'm not a nice person. Anyone with a rational mind and a little self-preservation sense would have done that."

He ignored the way the Contractor on his lap snorted and shot him a look that said _Yeah, right, who are you trying to kid you softie?_

To his surprise Kenji laughed a little when he heard his answer.

"Has anyone ever told you that you are a rotten liar Li-san? I know that you are a very kind person and you don't like it when people are getting hurt. When we first met, in the bar, you could have easily taken care of that thug, but you didn't want to hurt him. You even saved me from April-san and now you're helping me with this, warning me of what's going to happen and giving me advice. A person like you would never do something that would hurt another."

Hei stared at the boy who looked at him with almost sparkling eyes filled with admiration and respect and felt a little guilty.

He felt more confused and shocked than guilty though, since he couldn't think of anything that could have let Kenji come to such a conclusion. In his lap Mao made some chocking noise and started to tremble and Hei felt the urge to throw the Contractor down the flight of stairs again while the cat tried to keep in his laughter.

Mao knew that the assassin (key word being _assassin_ ) had only kept himself in check in that fight because he hadn't wanted to attract attention, he had saved the boy from April because _nobody_ deserved to be her target and he hadn't given the boy advice, he had been admonishing him and telling him that he was a stupid idiot for thinking he would be able to do everything without help.

Maybe Mao really had too much free-time, considering that he knew about every incident Kenji was talking about without Hei having to tell him.

"Do you think that cat is okay? It's making some strange noises." Kenji raised a concerned eyebrow and stared at the shaking ball of fur that was Mao.

Hei's hand twitched when he put it on the animal's head and the man-turned-cat stopped laughing immediately, instead he started to sweat when he felt the menacing aura around his team-mate.

"You really have a way with animals Li-san. You only had to touch it and it stopped being sick."

The assassin shook his head in disbelief when he heard that, while Mao was muttering several unflattering things under his breath.

"Flattery will get you nowhere – and you still haven't answered my question. Why her?"

The boy faltered for a moment before he answered, an almost hurting look on his face.

"Someone once told me that, having someone worth risking your life to protect is a wonderful feeling that enables you to anything. I think I found that someone."

"What about Hitotsubashi? From what I heard he is someone important to you."

Kenji hesitated, obviously torn about whether he should answer the question or not, but then decided that it couldn't hurt.

"I've known him since I was a kid. He helped me a lot when my father abandoned me and he was something of an older-brother-figure for me. He changed a lot though. He is still important to me, but sometimes I get the feeling that he wants to be rid of me. He has always been the protector in our relationship – never the one to be protected. I can see how he could get tired of that."

Hei looked at the boy still standing in front of him.

"Does that mean you will grow tired of her too?"

He knew that it was a hurtful question, but it was one the brown-haired youth in front of him had to answer.

"No. I meant that I'm not the one Hitotsubashi has always wanted to protect – you could say that I'm something of a substitute for the woman he lost."

The assassin sighed. He knew that there was no way he would be able to convince the boy that helping the Doll was a very stupid thing to do so he might as well give in.

"The station."

Kenji stared at him confused, startled by the abrupt change of topic.

"What?"

Hei sighed annoyed as he answered – he felt a little uncomfortable saying it out loud.

"I'll accompany you to the station but after that you're on your own."

The former Yakuza started to smile brightly and the assassin turned his head away, his hand tightening on the cat's head when he noticed the look that Mao shot him, which clearly said 'I told you so you disgrace of all cold-blooded assassins'.

Jumping on the dark haired man's shoulder, he started to whisper in his ear.

"The syndicate definitely won't like this Hei. Why are you helping this boy when you spent the last twenty minutes trying to talk some sense into the black hole that is his brain? If the syndicate finds out about this I don't want to have anything to do with this."

"Are you going to tell Huang about this?"

The assassin had returned to his usual monotone though he was muttering under his breath in Mao's direction, preventing Kenji from listening to him.  
"Are you crazy? Why would I do that? Watching you take apart a Yakuza-gang is much more interesting than listening to Huang lecture you, rant about you and tell the syndicate about it. As long as you don't mention my name if you get caught, you can do whatever you want."

Hei turned back to Kenji, who had been watching the two of them with a slight smirk on his face.

"You and this cat really like each other, don't you? You even talk to it and it climbs all over you."

Both Contractors glared at the boy for even thinking such a thing. It was true that they got along relatively well when the man-turned-cat hadn't done anything to provoke the assassin but the way the boy had said it made it sound really, really wrong.

Hei was suddenly reminded of the fact that he spent too much time with the MI6 agents. Before he had met them he never would have picked up on such a thing – now he could hear innuendo out of the words of a four-year old child – which was quite disconcerting.

The sudden opening of the door of Hei's room ripped him from his thoughts (which were about reasons why he should reduce the time he spent in April's company) and a very serious-looking November stood in the doorway.

"Come in. We need to talk to you."

Raising an eyebrow as if confused, he shared a look with Kenji, who was startled by the change in the usually easy-going blonde's mood.

The assassin shot Mao a look and the cat glared back but jumped off his shoulder and down the stairs, vanishing from sight.

They walked inside and Kenji gaped for a moment when he saw the Doll dressed up – unfortunately for him, April hit him over the head because of his reaction and started to yell at him.

"You are supposed to elope with your Aniki, not with a girl you bloody idiot! I was already thinking about where you could get married and now you shot my plans to pieces!"

The despair in her voice was almost comical but Hei didn't miss the sharp, calculating look in her eyes as she mustered the two of them.

"That's enough April. We need to know how you met this girl and what you know about her."

The assassin opened his mouth to say something, but he was stopped by a glare thrown at him by November.

"Kenji should answer the question since I know you are a brilliant liar Shengshun and I want to now the real circumstances."

Hei glared at the older man.

"What makes you think that I'd lie to you?"

"It wouldn't be the first time you did that and you're probably trying to hide a dangerous situation. Kenji – talk."

The assassin was annoyed, but maybe the MI6 agents knowing about the situation wasn't such a bad thing, his gaze wandering to July. The blonde Doll was looking at the young female in the room, obviously communicating in some way the dark haired man couldn't perceive. His attention returned to the room when he heard Kenji's voice fade away. He was stunned by the cold fury on November's face and even April looked angry.

"You are telling me that you kidnapped this girl and brought her to Shengshun's place without checking whether or not you were followed?" The blonde's voice was deadly quiet and he was obviously holding himself back from causing serious harm to the boy in front of him, who looked frightened.

"Y…yeah, I guess?"

That answer was apparently the straw that broke the camels back as the Brit stalked toward Kenji and grabbed him by his shirt, ripping out a few buttons.

"You are not only endangering Shengshun but also every other tenant in this building! What do you think these Yakuza are going to do with them when they find out that they sheltered you and your Doll? They are going to be tortured and slaughtered you fool!"

Hei gripped November's arms and tried to pry the older ones' hands off the youth's shirt. Kenji was looking like he was going to suffocate every second and The Brit losing his temper wasn't helpful in this situation.

When he failed, he looked around and saw April calmly watching the two men, not making a move to stop what was going on. It seemed like she was also quite upset with Kenji and his reckless actions. While she would never admit it, the dark haired man had grown on her and she liked to see November happy.

Finally the assassin turned to the last member of the MI6 trio and got an idea. He moved beside July and whispered something in the boy's ear, also mentioning that killing a man in Shengshun's apartment wasn't the smartest thing to do.

The Doll nodded and Hei watched with almost maniacal glee as the blonde boy stood beside November, only to kick his shin hard enough to make even April wince in sympathy, though shortly after that, both she and her blue-eyed team-mate stared at the small boy in disbelief, enabling the assassin to free Kenji from Jack Simon's grasp.

The brown haired youth gasped for breath and the slightly older man helped him to sit down on the floor beside the female Doll.

"What are you going to name her," he asked abruptly, not really knowing where that question came from but using it as a distraction for the still slightly homicidal looking MI6 agents.

Kenji hesitated a little before he answered softly.

"I'll name her Tsukasa. It's the name of Aniki's deceased important person."

Hei sighed a little but nodded before he turned back to November and glared at him annoyed.

"Killing someone in my room isn't the best way to deal with this situation Jack. Thank you for your concern, but I don't want to involve you any further."

It was a polite way to throw them out, but nobody in the three-person-team looked ready to follow his suggestion of leaving.

"You don't need to do this. We know people who take care of people like her. If you'd let us-"

April was cut off by a loud 'No!' from Kenji, who looked upset at even the suggestion of having to part with the Doll.

"I don't think that's a good idea either. Even if you know people who take care of her, the two of them should stay together," the assassin said calmly.

He didn't really agree with what Kenji was doing either, but being a syndicate member meant that he knew what November meant when he had said that people would 'take care' of her.

Tsukasa would be put into a team and start working for the MI6 and while he didn't think that the boy was a good care-taker, he knew that he was probably better than many of the teams there.

He had heard horror-stories of many organisations and teams who used Dolls for their own pleasure and amusement and some of them had died a horrifying death – especially female Dolls.

That didn't mean that she would be put into such a team – after several incidents the organisations chose the teams which got one of them quite strictly – but it was better to be safe than sorry.

He noticed July nod in the corner of his eyes and was a little surprised by the agreement of the boy, which went against both April's and November's will, but maybe he shouldn't be surprised.

He had had enough experiences with Yin to know that just because she didn't look like she didn't care about anything that was going on, it didn't mean that she didn't feel or think anything – some of her actions had been obviously thought out and deliberately chosen.

Tsukasa had had a conversation with July and if the boy went against his team-mates, it was safe to say that she wanted to stay with Kenji too.

_What a mess._

Why was it that he was always getting caught up in these kinds of things? No wonder Mao was always watching him – it was like watching a train-wreck again and again, only more amusing.

It was obvious that November disagreed with Hei and the two of them stared at each other, wanting the other to give in.

In the end, it was the blonde who sighed and agreed to help. The Brit too, knew about how some Dolls had been treated and while he was a Contractor and not really bothered by the suffering of others, he had been the first one to suggest a stricter observation and selection of teams with Dolls.

"Fine. But April, July and I are coming with you. Don't argue with me, or I'll call someone to take her with them."

The kingfisher-blue eyes that were usually soft when looking at him were now hard and determined and Hei knew that this was as good a compromise as he was going to get.

"Alright, then we should leave now. They're probably already looking for them and we shouldn't waste anymore time arguing."

Hei grabbed Kenji's jacket that had been lying on the floor and threw it at the youth, who looked happy to have more help.

"Let's go."

*+*+*

Sometimes April couldn't believe that Shengshun and November were still denying that they were a couple when it was almost painfully obvious that they were absolutely, madly in love with each other.

It was sweet and annoying at the same time, since nobody had proof that they were a couple, even though it was obvious.

Sighing a little, she followed the two men, July's hand firmly in her own. She could understand where Kenji and Shengshun were coming from – she had often thought that, Doll or not, the MI6 was no place for children.

Because of this, she was glad that the blonde boy had been put into her team – they had a lot of dangerous missions, but both she and November (though he would never admit it) had done their best to keep him out of danger.

Kenji and the newly named Tsukasa were following behind them and after a glance back to see if they were still following, she returned her gaze to the stubborn duo in front of her.

It made her smirk a little how the two walked still close enough to brush shoulders when they were obviously annoyed with each other.

It took them some time since they used a lot of back-alleys but finally they arrived at the station. April gently pushed July forward to Shengshun's side and while the Chinese man looked a little surprised, he grabbed the child's hand while November fell back to the dark skinned woman's side.

The two agents waved at Kenji and, with a slightly confused look the boy pulled Tsukasa with him in front of the pair.

That way they could have an eye on their companions and react to the slightest sign of danger.

The female Contractor rolled her eyes a little when she noticed how much attention the boy attracted with his screaming for tickets – he would have to learn how to be more inconspicuous.

She noticed that Shengshun tensed slightly beside her but he turned his head to quickly for her to be able to figure out what he had looked at. A short glance at November showed her that he too had noticed the dark haired man's reaction, but he didn't know what had caused it.

Kenji had finally managed to get two tickets for the next train that left the city and he joined them again. Again April looked around and finally she found what Shengshun had already noticed and she had suspected.

Several men were walking towards them, one of them discretely pulling out a gun.

Sharing a look with November, she suddenly screamed.

"A gun! He has a gun!"

People started to look around and many joined her scream when they noticed the armed Yakuza.

In the panic that happened then, the six of them managed to get away, but soon they were caught up in the mass of people who tried to run from the man with the gun and they lost each other in the crowd.

Beside her she heard November curse violently and worriedly and she had to bite back the urge to follow his example.

Her team-mate had told her that Shengshun could take care of himself (though that didn't stop the blonde from being overprotective) but could he also take care of two Dolls and a hot-headed brat?

*+*+*

Hei was glad that he had managed to lose April and November in the crowd, pulling Kenji (who was pulling the Doll) and July with him.

He noticed that a few men had managed to follow them and he let go of Kenji's wrist in favour of sweeping the blonde Doll he had been entrusted with into his arms, running faster after that.

Kenji was already out of breath when they ran into a hallway that would get them downstairs to the parking-garage. He was glad that he had memorised the blueprints of every building that could be important for one of his missions or for a get-away should he need it.

They had a little time, so he pushed the button for the elevator stationed there and let the boy in his arms back to the ground.

"You two go on ahead, I'll take care of the guys following us."

Kenji started to protest, but the elevator doors opened and he pushed the boy and the Doll into it.

"I can take care of myself and the two of you would only be a hindrance."

The doors closed and Hei relaxed a little, now that the primary targets of the Yakuza were gone. Now he turned to July, mustering him a little before asking gently "Do you mind being the bait? I won't let anything happen to you, I promise, but I need someone to distract them."

The boy looked at him blankly for a moment before nodding slightly and tilted his head in question of what to do.

"You just need to stand there facing the corridor. I'll do the rest."

Again the boy nodded and the assassin relaxed a little. He could already hear footsteps coming and gripped the empty trashcan standing by the boxes tighter.

The show could start as far as he was concerned.

*+*+*

There were many things that could annoy Hitotsubashi Yuu, but there was little that could genuinely make him furious.

Kenji betraying him was one of these things.

Ever since he had talked to the owner of the bar that worked for him and who had been hit over the head by the brown haired boy, he had felt a boiling fury rising slowly to his head and it had taken a lot out of him to stop himself from killing everyone in sight.

That angered him even more, since it wasn't the first time someone had tried to screw him over and he had never been that angry with them. He had given them the punishment they deserved and some more, but after the first burst of rage, he had always managed to calmly think about the situation.

This time he couldn't. This was more personal than anything else that had happened and he hadn't been able to calm down since he had gotten the news that Kenji had betrayed him.

He should have known from the beginning that the boy wasn't suited for the life of a Yakuza, but after Tsukasa had died and Kenji had asked him if he could join the group, he had acquiesced, glad that the only other person he was close to had decided to follow him.

He should have known better, he had known better – he had known from the first moment he had seen the boy that Kenji was incapable of doing the dirty and oftentimes cruel jobs that were a necessary evil for a Yakuza, but he had been too blinded by grief and hurt to deny himself the support he had wanted and gotten from the boy.

Leaning back in his car the high-ranking Yakuza member wondered when Kenji had become someone he needed.

In the beginning he had just been a kid in the neighbourhood that had always hung around him because of his alcoholic father at home. Then he had been something of a younger brother and after Tsukasa had died in an accident the dark eyed youth had become irreplaceable.

He had been the only one who understood the grief Yuu had felt when he had lost the person most important to him – he had been the only one he and Tsukasa had told their plans to.

They had been planning to get married – he would have left the group he had been in even then and Tsukasa would have followed him – and they had planned on taking Kenji with them.

She had always considered the boy as a younger brother and after realising the way he had been treated by his father, she had practically adopted him.

It was strange that the one he had trusted the most was the one who had betrayed him in the end.

Glaring through the windshield at the youth who was running with the Doll clinging to him, he swore that Kenji would pay for his mistake.

*+*+*

The moment he had been hit by the car he had often ridden in, Kenji cursed himself for getting caught. Then the pain in his leg and ribs distracted him from these thoughts and he curled into himself, lifting his head and looking at the man in the car.

"Aniki…"

His body hurt, but it didn't hurt as much as his heart when Hitotsubashi gave the order to stuff him into the trunk of the car while the boss dragged Tsukasa into it.

Two of the boss' men grabbed him and did as they had been told to do. Kenji tried to struggle, but he was still too out of it from being hit by the car to offer much resistance.

It seemed that his Aniki hadn't forgotten about Kenji's hatred of small and dark places.

He wasn't claustrophobic, but when he had been a child, his father had always locked him into a closet when he had been disobedient (in his father's eyes) and sometimes he had been left in there for a full day.

He had quickly learned to keep food and a blanket in there and it had been enough space for a child, but he had always hated it.

After his father had left, he had taken a baseball bat and, with Hitotsubashi's help, he had demolished that closet, letting out all his frustration and helplessness he had felt then.

Angrily he kicked against the walls constricting him, ignoring the pain that action brought in his leg and ribs.

"Open up dammit! Aniki! Open it up!"

He knew that there was little chance that Hitotsubashi would stop the car, let him out and let him leave peacefully with Tsukasa, but one had to try.

He heard his Aniki's voice but couldn't make out what he was saying, so he cursed again and tried to prepare himself for whatever it was that was gong to happen after the trunk would be opened.

*+*+*

Again carrying the blonde Doll in his arms, the assassin shielded him from the bullets shot after them, quickly closing the door and locking it. That would buy him enough time to catch up with Kenji and Tsukasa if he hurried.

He arrived just in time to see a car drive away, tires screeching as it left and he had the bad feeling that it held two passengers who were unwilling to ride in it.

Cursing viciously, Hei let the boy in his arms down to the floor, staring a little when he caught sight of a familiar back cat of the roof of a car.

"You're too late, the boy and the Doll were taken back by that Yakuza guy. What are you going to do now?"

The assassin glared at Mao, annoyed that the Contractor would risk speaking in front of an MI6 agent. It didn't matter whether he was a Doll or not, it was still dangerous.

Hei hadn't lived such a long time in such a dangerous organisation by being careless and it would do Mao well not to underestimate people he thought were harmless.

The dark haired man had once met a six years old Contractor with the power to dissolve people's organs.

One organ per person and most of the time she chose places like the windpipe, the lung and part of the stomach, killing people in the most agonizing way possible.

It was the first and last time Hei had been glad that Carmine had killed a child. The red-headed woman had needed the blood of a child and had come across the enemy Contractor unexpectedly when she had been looking for a kid.

Shaking that thought out of his head he stared at Mao, who had been saying something about being seen as a traitor by the syndicate.

The assassin could feel his eyebrow twitch and the man-turned-cat became silent when he realised that he had angered the other Contractor.

"Are you insane to talk about such a thing in front of a MI6 member?"

He glared at the feline before he turned to July, who had been watching as impassively as always.

He was thinking about what to say to the boy when another voice interrupted them.

"He won't tell anyone."

Startled Hei and Mao turned to the speaker and both of them were stunned when they realised that it was Yin who had talked.

"What are you doing here?" The assassin stared at the silver haired Doll stunned, disbelief clearly visible on his face.

Quickly he looked around and after some time he found what he had been looking for – a puddle of water on the floor, left over from the strong rainfall the day before.

Shock quickly changed to anger.

"Were you tracking me?"

The fury he felt was clearly audible in his voice and it infuriated him even more that neither the two Dolls, nor the other Contractor on the car reacted to it.

"I wasn't. I was talking to July. He called me."

Mao made a disbelieving noise in the back of his throat, but Hei knew better than to doubt what the girl was saying. Yin didn't lie and he doubted that Dolls even had the ability to deceive people.

The silver haired girl walked towards July and tilted her head in question. The boy nodded and she repeated what she had already said.

"He won't tell anyone."

Hei relaxed a little while Mao snorted in disbelief, which caused the assassin to glare at him again. The man-turned-cat was the one who had been the one talking about things that shouldn't be talked about in present company, just because he still thought of Dolls as thoughtless, soulless beings that couldn't act without receiving orders.

Immediately the Contractor hid his disbelief and smiled as innocently as possible for him.

"I'll be on my way then. Good luck with everything Hei."

The smile turned into a mischievous smirk and the assassin knew why – Mao was going to follow him again and get his daily dose of amusement.

The dark haired man wished that the cat would choke on the next hair-ball it would try to spit out.

Sighing slightly when the other one had finally vanished, the dark haired man turned around to the two Dolls, only to notice that they were staring at something – an observation spectre to be more specific.

"She says that she and he have been captured. She says that she wants you to save him."

As soon as she had noticed that Hei's attention was on them, Yin had started to talk and when she had finished she turned to look at the assassin.

Said man was quiet as he thought about what he was going to do. It wasn't possible that the Yakuza had sent her. They didn't even know about the abilities of a Doll and they had no idea that Contractors, who could see the observation spectres, even existed.

Sighing again, the assassin knew that he had made his decision the second Yin had finished talking and he saw no reason to hesitate doing what he was going to do anyway.

"Yin, can you lead me there? July, can you look For November and April?"

Yin turned to the smaller boy beside her and they had a silent conversation before July nodded and started to walk away. Then the silver haired girl turned back to the impatiently waiting Hei and nodded at him.

It was time to go.

*+*+*

November gritted his teeth as he pushed past another person obstructing his way and he had the feeling that his dentist would be very unhappy with him when the blonde would come to his half-yearly check up.

The Brit really didn't care about this at the moment though, since he was trying to find Shengshun and July, who had vanished in the crowd but so far he had been unsuccessful.

April had gone the opposite way, telling him that they could cover more ground that way and he had agreed with her.

Now he wished he had disagreed, because he needed someone in his vicinity who was as frustrated as he was and the people panicking all around him weren't helping, especially since he was feeling like doing that too.

Just as he was considering joining the crowd around him in freaking out, his cell-phone started to ring and he almost dislocated a finger in his haste of pulling it out of his pocket.

"Did you find them?" He didn't even give April a chance to say anything but it wasn't necessary – her voice showed that she was as impatient as November was and what she was telling him wasn't good.

"July found me. He told me that Kenji and Tsukasa were kidnapped and that Shengshun followed them, telling him to find us. He's now looking for him and the Yakuza and from the looks of it Kenji is in trouble."

The blonde Contractor growled in his throat, cursing Shengshun and his habit of helping people who asked him for help.

As soon as April told him where she and July were, he sprinted down the crowded corridor, ignoring the annoyed glances people shot at him when he pushed them out of his way.

When he had saved his younger over, he was going to give him a nice, long talk about how people got what they deserved and that few of them would actually need help wouldn't they always do stupid things.

*+*+*

Kenji raised his arms, trying to protect his head from another kick from the men standing around him. He had long since given up on trying to protect the rest of his body since it didn't do him any good. The hits always went through his guard and he didn't stand a chance against the burly guys around him, who were all professional fighters, taller and stronger than him.

He slowly lowered his arms when he didn't feel anything hitting him anymore and noticed that the men beating on him had retreated, giving the man now standing in front of him some privacy.

Hitotsubashi knelt on the floor and leant in close to him.

"You shouldn't have betrayed me Kenji. That was a mistake that you'll pay for with your life."

Kenji hadn't known that he could hurt even more than he already did but he had been wrong – right now it felt as if someone was trying to carve the flesh off his bones and he had to blink against the tears that wanted to escape him.

He wasn't scared of dying – being a Yakuza, he had always known that a violent death was a very possible end for him – no, he was hurt because of the impassivity and coldness with which these words had been said by someone he had always considered family.

"I never intended to betray you! I just… didn't want her to be sold like a piece of meat."

That, and he had wanted to preserve the last remaining scrap of humanity that his Aniki had had left.

As soon as he would have sold Tsukasa, he would have started to see every human he met as a tool at best and worthless trash to be disposed of at worst.

He hadn't wanted to see that happen, so he had left with the one who could be the trigger for such a transformation.

"But that's what you did. Haven't you realised yet that she only is a slab of meat which has the form of a human being? She doesn't react to anything, she doesn't have feelings and she doesn't even think. Do you think that she'll smile and thank you once you get her to a safe place? Don't be an idiot – she'll be as still and lifeless as she is now and there is nothing that can change that."

Hitotsubashi's voice was still quiet, but now it had finally started to grow agitated and Kenji wondered whether it was because the man was thinking about the deal that had almost gone down the drain, or if he was thinking about killing the boy who had once clung to his back when he had taken him out on a ride on his bike.

"You threw away your life and there is nothing that can change that."

Frantically trying to find a way to prolong the conversation, Kenji said the first thing that came to his mind.

"I named her Tsukasa."

That stopped the black haired man dead in his tracks and a slow-burning fury was visible on his face when he reacted.

"What did you say?"

The boy wondered if he had just made a severe mistake, but he trusted his instincts and continued with that train of thought.

"I gave her that name because she has the same eye-colour as Tsukasa-nee had. And I gave it to her because I want to protect her with my life."

The older man stilled and the expression on his face iced over.

"These days are long since over. You should stop thinking about them."

"Why? I'm going to die soon anyway, so why can't I think about how much you loved her, how you would sometimes make breakfast for us, how you helped me demolish the closet in my home back then, how you hit my father once, after he had beaten me black and blue just because he could, how-"

The dark eyed boy was cut off by a large, familiar hand closing around his throat pushing him into the ground and cutting off his air-supply.

His eyes had never left the older man's face and he had never seen the expression on Hitotsubashi's face before.

Slowly such thoughts vanished though and he formed a small smile – that was the way it was supposed to be. If he was going to be killed it should be done by the bare hands of the most important person in his life.

He apologized in his thoughts to Tsukasa for failing her that badly on their first day together but even that thought vanished as black spots took away his vision and he could hear his heartbeat, which had been pounding in his ears, slow down.

_I guess that was it for me._

Then everything went black

*+*+*

Yuu couldn't hear anything but the words Kenji had told him repeat in his head. The boy below him had stopped moving and he pulled away his hand from the now bruised throat of the younger man.

He swallowed thickly.

Kenji wasn't moving.

Slowly his hearing returned to him and he was suddenly shoved away from the body that _was – not – moving_ . Dimly he recognized the dark haired man who had helped out Kenji before.

_Kenji _ _was he even breathing? Oh gods, what had he done?_

The dark haired man grabbed the younger man's limp wrist and pressed his fingertips against the pulse-point.

The tension in his shoulders eased when he apparently got a good result and he put the wrist down on the floor.

The guys that usually acted as his bodyguards and henchmen had their weapons out and were aiming at them, obviously hesitating in fear of hitting their boss.

He didn't react to that though, too busy staring at the still, but living form on the one who had been (was still?) his closest friend for years.

"He is only unconscious. Thankfully you stopped just in time to keep him alive."

Hitotsubashi stared at him for a moment, rational thought returning to him. He felt angry with himself. He had been planning on getting rid of the youth so why had he reacted like that? It was completely out of character for him to do such a thing and he found such a weakness unforgivable.

_But you didn't plan on killing him with your bare hands._

He gritted his teeth, closing his mouth which had been opened to order his lackeys to shoot both Kenji and his friend.

He couldn't do it, not after what Kenji had said to him about remembering the good times they had together.

He remembered how angry he had felt when, one day, the boy had knocked on his door, drenched in rain and covered in bruises and wounds, his ribs broken and tears trailing down his cheeks.

It had been the first time that he had felt he could kill someone without hesitation and only Kenji's pleads of not harming the man he called father had been able to keep him from doing so.

The Chinese man looked at him cautiously and tensed slightly, obviously preparing for whatever could happen.

Hitotsubashi sighed and climbed back to his feet.

"Lower your guns before you shoot me accidentally."

All of the men he had with him looked surprised and Yuu smiled a little bitterly, looking at his watch.

"We need to leave. We let our client wait more than enough and I still have to call some other people to take care of something for me."

The men glanced at the unresponsive body of the brown haired boy lying on the floor, staring at the bruises around his throat and swallowing nervously.

Everyone had known that Kenji was the only one Hitotsubashi trusted and favoured and to see him (apparently) kill someone that close to him made them uneasy.

Eager to please, they put away their guns and got ready to leave.

The black haired Yakuza turned back to the other dark haired man who was still crouched on the floor and looking at him with dark, dangerous eyes.

He was reminded of a large wild-cat he had seen once as a young boy in a zoo. It had been heavily injured in the wilderness and put there to recover from its wounds. The Black Panther had rarely moved, only staring at the visitors with an expression in its eyes that was now mirrored in those of a young Chinese man.

Fury, hate, disgust – the desire to rip apart those that dared cross it with its teeth, to savour the blood of its victims and devour their carcasses.

He had never forgotten that look and it chilled him that the timid young man he had met only a couple of days before could have the expression of an experienced hunter, an experienced killer, in his eyes.

And that killer was apparently fond of the youth he had just tried to strangle.

Keeping him in the corner of his sight, he turned his gaze to Kenji, who was now breathing obviously.

The black haired man hoped that the younger man had enough sense to keep away from the Doll he had called Tsukasa and Hitotsubashi himself, because the next time they met he vowed he would kill Kenji, regret and friendship be damned.

Slowly he walked towards his car when an explosion rocked the building.

*+*+*

When November arrived, the building was half-destroyed and a fight was taking place in the remains.

The Brit quickened his steps only to slow again when he got closer. He let his gaze wander around the people who were trying to kill each other, trying to locate Shengshun, Kenji or the Doll.

It took him a moment, but finally he found both men crouched behind a car while another man held off the apparent enemies with a gun.

It was Hitotsubashi and November felt annoyed that the black haired man was now trying to play the hero and protecting the two when he was the one who had started this in the first place.

Carefully the MI6 agent made his way through the masses, avoided punches, kicks and gunshots and finally arrived at his destination.

"How do you always get yourself into these messes?"

Shengshun glared at him, having already seen him some time ago.

"I get into them because people keep dragging me into their fights." The younger man's voice was annoyed and the blonde wondered what it said about the other that he was completely unbothered by being in the middle of a fight between Yakuza.

A soft groan caught his attention and he looked at Kenji, who was now regaining consciousness.

"Wha… what's going on? I thought…"

November never found out what he thought, since another man crashed into them, holding the Doll that had been missing in his arms.

"Boss, what should we do? We're unprepared and they outnumber us three to one. We'll be slaughtered."

Hitotsubashi, who had been ignoring them other than a short glance when Kenji had woken up, didn't stop firing, only pausing when he needed to reload.

"Aniki, let me get her out of here!"

Kenji's voice was hoarse and sounded painful, but the determination in it couldn't be mistaken.

"I'll protect her with my life and you know she won't survive if you don't let her go."

This time the black haired Yakuza hesitated before gritting his teeth.

"How many of us are left?"

The man, Yuuto, who had carried Tsukasa and was now helping his boss defend themselves answered as if he had been waiting for the question.

"From what I saw it's only us and Tooru anymore. The rest is already…"

He didn't finish the sentence but he didn't need to. They all knew what he had meant and they also knew what it meant for them.

"Alright. Kenji you take the Doll and leave with it and your friends. Yuuto, you'll accompany them and make sure that she arrives where she needs to be. I'll try to go after you. Take Tooru with you if he's still alive."

All of them knew that it would mean his death were he to try and hold them off by himself. Even, now their opponents were coming closer every second they wasted with talking.

"Who would do something like this?" Kenji sounded horrified and sad.

Hitotsubashi snorted and answered surprising even Yuuto with his knowledge of who was trying to kill him.

"I put Oshita's brother in the hospital. These are his men so I'm guessing that he didn't like that."

November snorted slightly but didn't say anything. After he had heard that Shengshun had been attacked by that guy at the bar, he had investigated him and found out that he too was a Yakuza named Oshita. If everything was as he suspected, it was Kenji's and Shengshun's fault that they had been attacked now.

Sighing slightly he shrugged out of his jacket, west and tie, feeling hot from running to this place.

Then he took his cell-phone and called April. He let it ring once and cut the call off again.

The dark-skinned woman would know what it meant and he needed some help if he wanted to survive all of this. Nobody had noticed what he had done and, shrugging slightly, he took out his own gun and started to take down those trying to kill him and the others.

He could feel the others' surprised looks but ignored them, picking off five guys who had tried to leave their cover in quick succession.

"We shouldn't chat we should try and get away."

His voice had taken on the usual cool and professional tone he used when he was working with the police or fighting someone.

Beside him he could hear Shengshun murmur an agreement before his lover said something that made his heart stop.

"I'll try to hold them off. I'm faster than you are and if you give me your gun and magazines it won't be a problem to pick them off one by one."

One of his shots went wild and hit what was left of the ceiling.

*+*+*

Hei could feel the disbelieving stares of the others but ignored them. Kenji was still weak from being strangled, Hitotsubashi had been hurt in that first explosion, the Doll couldn't fight, Yuuto would protect Tsukasa and Hitotsubashi and he didn't want November to be in danger.

He really was the best choice for this – besides, maybe the syndicate would cut him some slack for saving their henchman.

Without waiting for a reply he grabbed Yuuto's gun and pulled two magazines out of his inner shirt-pocket. He expertly checked it and then turned back to them.

"As soon as their attention is on me you'll escape through one of the holes in the wall from the explosion."

Hei crouched on his feet and got ready to jump into the fray but a hand gripping his arms prevented him.

"There is no way that I'll let you do that."

November sounded cold but the assassin ignored his words, trying to pry the hand off him.

Another explosion across them stopped their potential quarrel and threw them off their feet.

The car across them had exploded and Hei immediately saw their chance.

"Run!" He jumped to his feet and jerked Kenji up with him. Yuuto, still carrying Tsukasa followed, one arm wrapped around the slightly swaying Hitotsubashi.

November cursed slightly but also started to herd the others to the place where the wall had collapsed, leaving an opening large enough for escaping.

The smoke that had come from the car and which had hidden their movements was slowly dissipating and from the curse the blonde Brit let out it was obvious that he had noticed that Hei was no longer beside him.

The assassin, true to his profession, had used this opportunity and gotten rid of a third of the people who had been attacking them. Then his ammunition went out (the magazines he had gotten from Yuuto hadn't been full) and had to continue with his bare hands.

Since he had never liked guns and wasn't that great of a shot it didn't bother him too much. He had always been better with blades than with guns and even some wire was better than that.

Breaking the neck of one Yakuza, he grabbed the knife he could see on his belt and stabbed the one trying to sneak up behind him.

It was chaotic, since people were attacking each other, not knowing if it was friend or foe – Hitotsubshi's men had done a great job of convincing the attackers that they were more numerous than they were in reality and because of that it was easy for the professional hit-man to slink between and around them, killing and knocking them out as he went. He also heard November calling for him and obviously killing those he came across but didn't speak since it would give away his position.

When the smoke had fully cleared, he was busy strangling a man with someone's belt and opposite him another man had one of his arms wrapped around November's throat and was holding a gun to his head.

The blonde only looked annoyed at having been caught off guard but the scene sent a shock through Hei's system.

He loosened the belt around the man's neck and his victim gasped for breath before letting out a spew of curses which caught both November's and the other man's attention.

"Aniki!"

It seemed that Hei had caught the biggest fish in the pond, since the rest of the men surrounded him and pointed their weapons at him.

The assassin frowned, wondering how he was going to get out of this one when the men he was currently holding hostage started to scream orders.

"Don't stand around like idiots! Follow Hitotsubashi and his goons! Don-"

He was cut off by Hei tightening the belt again. Several men stayed but the others followed their boss' orders and ran out of the building, looking for the one who had crossed them.

The Chinese man cursed slightly, loosening his choice of murder-instrument, not wanting his hostage to die just yet.

"You are surrounded and we have your friend. There's no way you can escape so let the man you're holding go."

The assassin glared at the Yakuza angrily, hating that he held November's safety in his hands.

He knew that the blonde wouldn't allow himself to die, but he also knew that accidents could happen and, even if the Brit managed to escape safely, that wouldn't say anything about Hei's own safety.

His eyes started to dart around, desperately trying to find a way out of the situation. The MI6 agent was a Contractor and he would defend himself from anything that threatened his safety, so why was he hesitating now?

The dark haired man turned back to his lover and stared at him, trying to read the closed expression on his face.

_Why aren't you defending yourself you idiot?_

November stared back at him steadily, but when one of the goons behind the assassin shifted, he tensed and Hei could see his hands twitch as he stared at the Yakuza trying to harm the younger one.

_Is it because of me?_

The unexpected thought took his breath away and he had to keep himself from laughing in disbelief. The older man was a Contractor and while he believed that the blonde held an attraction for him, he wasn't arrogant enough to think that the Brit would endanger his own life just to save him.

Swallowing slightly he let his eyes meet November's slightly narrow ones and felt an odd feeling rise up into his chest.

With another start of surprise he realised that if was fear. Fear and desperation were trying to strangle him just as he had suffocated the man in front of him and he had to swallow again, this time to try and relieve the dryness in his mouth.

The last time he had felt that way had been when he had woken up in South America, the rest of his team gone and Pai having disappeared. The despair he had felt then had been indescribable and he had thought that he would never again feel that way after his sister had disappeared. He had lived for only her sake for such a long time that he had forgotten how to live for himself.

It stunned him that he felt the same feeling as back then by the mere thought of losing the older man he had come to call 'lover'.

He hadn't realised that November had become such an important part of his life. He had known that he enjoyed their talks, he had known that he liked the touches with which they caressed the other when nobody was around more and more and he had grown to expect and grow dependent of the kindness and protectiveness in the older one's every gesture and silence and every look he sent Hei.

Feeling his hands start to tremble, the Chinese man made his decision which led up to one thing.

"Before I let him go you'll point the gun at me. I don't want you to shoot him just after I let him go."

_I don't want him to die._

He ignored the surprised and furious look November sent him and waited until his request had been obeyed before he let go of the belt he had been gripping hard enough hurt just moments ago.

The boss stumbled towards the rest of his men hastily, wanting to get away from the young man who had been holding him hostage.

The one still gripping the Brit smirked in triumph and slowly started to pull the trigger, the barrel still pointed at the assassin in front of him when a strange cracking sound could be heard.

Hei, who had been looking at November the whole time, had seen the older man's eyes glow red and his body glow a silvery white, one of the blonde's hands covering the Yakuza's hands, having frozen him in a matter of seconds.

The dark haired man sighed in relief while the other criminals in the room stared confused, having looked forward to the death of the one who had tried to harm their boss.

All of them stared when the man gripping the Brit simply fell apart with a punch of said agent.

It was deathly silent and nobody moved.

Their eyes met and the blonde's orbs slid to the still form of the boss.

"When this is over we'll have to have a talk."

Hei winced a little but nodded in agreement before they both exploded in a flurry, taking down the rest of the still stunned men around them quickly and carefully.

In the middle of this a sudden downpour drenched them and November muttered something about 'being damn late' before spears formed in his hands and he impaled the Yakuza with them.

Knowing that the blonde was distracted, the assassin cut loose, his speed increasing, his movement growing more defined and fluid and his attacks more ruthless.

Dodging a kick aimed at his head, he arched his body, planted his hands on the floor and back-flipped, his feet catching the man's chin and knocking him back a few steps. As soon as his feet touched the ground again, he darted forward and slammed his fist against the man's windpipe, crushing it in the process.

He took a look around and noticed that that man had been the last one, everybody else either incapacitated or dead.

Tiredly Hei brushed a strand of hair out of his face and walked towards November, who turned to look at him with a serious expression on his face.

"We need to catch up to Kenji and the others soon or they'll-"

The dark haired man was cut off by a pair of lips pressing against his own.

"My heart stopped when I noticed you weren't beside me."

November's arms wrapped tightly around him and the assassin let his eyes close, responding gladly after seeing the blonde held at gunpoint. He had known that the older man could take care of himself but that hadn't changed the fact that he could have been shot had a wrong move been made.

He slowly let his hands trace the part of the blonde's face where the gun had touched the skin, reassuring himself that the skull was still whole and that the other's blood hadn't been shed.

Slowly they parted again and Hei repeated himself.

"We have to go look for them."

November nodded, having an odd expression on his face before it was replaced by one of determination.

*+*+*

It took all that Kenji had not to stumble or simply collapse in exhaustion, but somehow he managed. After all, the only thing waiting for him, were he to do that was death and he decided that he wasn't ready to die just yet.

He had known from the way how both Simon-san and Li-san had acted that both of them were aware that they could die any moment and while they wouldn't go down easily, they had accepted their mortality long ago.

Kenji wasn't that mature. He still liked reading about invincible and immortal super-heroes, admiring them instead of scoffing about their unrealistic design.

He hadn't been in enough life threatening situations to stop believing that the good would win out in the end. He wasn't as naïve as people always assumed. He knew that the world wasn't a nice place, he had liven in a hell-hole for years after he had been born after all, but things had changed for the better for him.

He now came across as childish because he enjoyed doing things he hadn't gotten to do in his childhood. His father had prevented him from enjoying himself very effectively and even a few years after he had been abandoned, the rules he had learned his whole life had still been beaten into him.

It had taken him a lot of time to realise that, just because he was enjoying himself, it didn't mean that someone would show up and beat him up because he had laughed too loudly and disturbed them.

His Aniki and Tsukasa-san had helped him with that and he was more than grateful to them.

That train of thought led his eyes to the figure running in front of him, being supported by Yuuto-san, who had let go of Tsukasa, who was running in front of him.

They had barely managed to get past the next warehouse when they started to hear shouts behind them.

Turning around Kenji wanted to ask Li-san a question when he noticed that the Chinese man and the blonde, who was always following him, weren't around.

He was panicking when he realised that they had probably stayed back to help distract their attackers from their escape and that the men following them could only mean one thing.

_They're probably dead._

The brown haired boy felt sick with self-loathing, feeling tears well up in his eyes that obstructed his view.

It was his fault that the two older men he admired that much were dead now. Just because he had taken Tsukasa to Li-san's place, just because he had needed help and the dark haired man had been kind enough to help, just because of his stupid insecurity which had caused him to depend on Li-san and Simon-san and the others.

Kenji started to run faster. If they had already died because of him, he would make sure that they didn't die in vain.

When he passed the Doll, he grabbed her hand and, quickening his steps even more, he wrapped his free arm around Hitotsubashi, steadying him even more and helping him to go even faster.

As shot that hit the ground close beside them made Kenji panic – he tried to run faster, but he was already at his limit, his leg hurting, his ribs aching and he tried not to think about the ache in the rest of his body.

Suddenly his Aniki's weight was completely on him and he stared at Yuuto-san, fearing that the broad man had been hit by one of the shots raining around them.

But the darkly clothed man hadn't been hit – he was bending down and pulling a gun from a holster on his calf. It was smaller than his first one, but it was as well taken-care of as the other had been.

"What are you-?"

Kenji had to stop talking, fighting a coughing fit that would probably make him lose balance and drop the man leaning on him.

Said man was still conscious though, and he weakly finished that sentence.

"What do you think you are doing?"

Even weakened his voice was still steady, low and dangerous and the dark eyed boy admired his Aniki for that. He had always been too cheerful for something like that and, even after almost being killed by the black haired man, he couldn't help but respect him.

Maybe April-san wasn't far off with saying that his affections were more than platonic if Hitotsubashi could beat him around like that and he still didn't hate or fear him.

"I'm going back to distract them and catch their attention. Good luck." Before they could protest, he had already started to run back to the place they had left and soon they heard the sounds of a conflict. It was short, and painful to hear, but neither Kenji, nor the older man tried to cover their ears. That would be disrespecting the sacrifice of the man who had left them and neither of them wanted to do that.

Gritting his teeth and panting slightly, the boy tried to continue, now with the heavy weight of the older man weighing him down, but he had slowed considerably.

His injured leg was trying to give out under him and it took everything he had to keep standing, when suddenly Hitotsubashi stopped walking.

"Aniki, what are you doing? We have to go or we-"

He was cut off by a hand gently gripping his chin and a pair of chapped lips covering his own gently in a show of gentle affection that made his head spin.

It had been incredibly chaste and almost innocent, but Kenji's lips felt as if they were on fire and he was almost painfully aware of how the older man's body was pressing against his.

He hadn't even realised he had let go of Tsukasa's hand, he had forgotten about her entirely concentrating on the man kissing him.

The black haired man chuckled, his previously composed voice was now hoarse and uneven, the emotional intensity of it unsettling even him.

"Had I known that it was this easy to shut you up I'd have tried this ages ago."

Hitotsubashi brushed one hand along his throat, regret clearly visible in his eyes.

"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to do that, I just snapped."

Kenji wanted to say something, but it was as if someone had stolen his voice and rendered him immobile.

The Yakuza in front of him smirked slightly and brushed his lips against the boy's once again, this time almost teasingly.

"Do as you wish with her. Good luck."

With that he let go of the dark eyed youth and staggered back the way they had come. Kenji wanted to go after him and took several steps to follow, but two small hands gripping his own prevented him from doing so.

He looked down and remembered Tsukasa, blushing slightly when he realised that she had seen such an intimate moment between him and the one who had been trying to sell her.

He wanted to go after his Aniki with a desperation he hadn't previously known but he held himself back. He wasn't armed, he wasn't a particularly good fighter and he knew that he would only be a burden were he to try and help now.

So he continued to run, turning his frustration and desperation into the energy he needed, only a few tears trailing down his cheeks telling how horrible he felt at the moment.

And these feelings had nothing to do with his physical decision.

*+*+*

Yuu knew that he wasn't a good person. He was responsible for the unhappiness and misfortune of hundreds and he had done everything he had without a second thought.

Kenji would be disappointed were he to know about it and Hitotsubashi hoped that the boy never would.

He didn't know what had compelled him to kiss the youth, but seeing him exhausted, in pain and still trying to help the one that had almost killed him had stirred something inside of him that he had long since thought was dead.

A sliver of passion, affection, the wish to protect and cherish – he had thought himself to be incapable of these kinds of feelings ever since Tsukasa had died but it seemed that they hadn't vanished but simply waited for the right time to re-emerge.

And they couldn't have chosen a better time for doing that, now that he was too exhausted to think clearly, now that he was remembering all the wonderful memories he shared with Kenji and now that he had finally gotten a chance to redeem himself.

He wanted Kenji to be safe.

It had been years since he had thought that, and he wondered when he had gone from thinking it daily after seeing bruises on the child's body to not thinking it even once in years.

Yuu gripped the gun in his hand tighter, trying to focus on the street he was walking on – he didn't have the energy to run anymore – instead of sinking into depressing thoughts.

Ahead of him he could see the quickly nearing forms of the Yakuza that had attacked him and the others and so he stopped walking and readied himself for the fight. He wanted to kill as many as possible in his condition before they killed him and he didn't doubt that they would murder him as soon as a convenient opportunity arose.

Smirking in self-depreciation he thought to himself that he had never expected to feel the urge to protect someone with his life ever again, but here he was, sacrificing himself to buy Kenji and the Doll – and _Tsukasa_ , honestly, that boy was to gentle for his own good – some more time to escape.

He felt sorry that Yuuto's death, which had been intended for his own safety, was now used for the safety of one that the Yakuza had thought disposable, but it couldn't be helped.

Taking a deep breath, he fired the first shot, immediately moving to the side after giving away his location, though he was hindered by his body screaming at him.

Muttering a curse under his breath that would have made Kenji blush for a week straight he dropped to the floor and fired another shot, this time hitting a man and downing him.

They were coming closer and so he tried to get back to his feet, but was too weak to actually do so.

He suspected that he had broken several bones in the explosion, but his whole body was hurting so much that the pain of them simply didn't register.

Giving up on trying to climb to his feet, Hitotsubashi started to shoot again, hitting another one while the others took cover.

The black haired man chuckled as he thought of his rather hilarious position.

He was comfortably sitting on the ground, killing people with his gun and said enemies were running around like chickens. He hadn't expected to be that cheerful while waiting for his death, but he felt better than he had in years.

He now didn't have the burden of being a high-ranking Yakuza-member, he didn't have to think up a new diabolical scheme that would get him money, he didn't have to think about the lives he had destroyed, the families he had ripped apart and the people he had killed.

Right now he was simply thinking about protecting the person most important to him.

It seemed that the men had finally found out his position, but he didn't even try to get away, knowing that it was useless in his condition.

That was also the moment he ran out of bullets and so he simply threw his gun at them and waited for them to get him.

The men hesitated, obviously thinking that it was a trap, but after some time they crawled out from wherever they had hidden themselves in and, after noticing that nothing happened, they laughed mockingly and walked up to him, jeering and cursing at him.

He just looked at them calmly, having already made peace with the fact that he would die, happy that he could protect someone important to him.

"You are not even trying to defend yourself you gutless bastard?"

Yuu's lips twitched in amusement.

"I didn't think that Oshita's henchmen had a flair for clichés and dramatics. Good workers are apparently hard to come by these days."

The man who had talked snarled angrily, somehow resembling more a small annoyed dog that anything really dangerous.

_Completely different from the Chinese man that Kenji is that fond of._

The dark haired man had been dangerous and obviously an experienced killer. These guys were merely kittens trying to be lions.

The one he had provoked raised the gun in his hand and aimed it at him.

Yuu didn't close his eyes or even tried to look away – he simply thought of a boy he had met years ago with dark eyes and a bright smile.

And he wished him luck, hoping that he would live a long life with the one he had chosen to be his important person.

*+*+*

Hei and November were running into the direction the older one had seen the others run before he had turned back to look for the assassin.

In the darkness they almost stumbled over the corpse of the one Hitotsubashi had called 'Yuuto' and, sharing a glance, they quickened their steps, almost sprinting down the street in their haste to get to Kenji. They had to avoid a couple of corpses of the Yakuza attacking them, but neither of them were really bothered by that.

They heard noise farther down and could make out the forms of two people dragging someone with them.

Hei brushed his shoulder against November's and both of them slowed, their already quiet steps growing inaudible.

"I guess the boss will be happy that we managed to get rid of this guy – though it's a pity that he managed to kill a couple of us." The man shook the arm in his hands slightly while the other laughed throatily.

"Maybe we'll even get the bonus of having a go at the 'Doll'-kid when the others bring it back."

Again they laughed and didn't even notice the two shadows creeping up on them until a pair of hands grabbed the head of one man and twisted sharply, breaking his neck without any trouble or hesitation.

The other man tried to scream but found that he was unable to move his body, when a sharp jerk on his hair ripped his head off his frozen body.

They both looked at the dead body of Hitotsubashi Yuu lying in front of them, a gaping hole in his head, blood and part of the brain splattered on his clothes and the ground.

Other parts of his body were obviously hurt too, but neither of the two agents wanted to look at the corpse any further.

Hei leant down slightly and gently closed the black haired man's eyes. He hadn't liked him, had been more than angry when he had come to the warehouse Yin had told him about and found Kenji almost strangled to death by someone he had obviously admired.

It reminded him a little of his older brother and he didn't want to think about him.

They were silent for a moment before the Brit said something to break the heavy mood.

"I need a smoke." Hei shot him a look, playing innocent as he stared at the blonde in disbelief but before he could do more than that, the Brit interrupted him.

"I'll explain later. It's just necessary for now."

The dark haired man nodded slightly and murmured in understanding, starting to walk and, when the blonde beside him had lit up a cigarette they started to run again.

Despite himself, the assassin thought that it looked amusing that the blonde was running while doing something as unhealthy as smoking, but every thought of amusement vanished from his thoughts when he noticed the people who were beating up another figure just ahead. He could easily discern Kenji's light brown hair in the middle of the men and slid the knife he had grabbed from the corpse of a Yakuza into his hand.

There were five men, Kenji and the Doll, which was simply standing there, a blank expression on her face.

Hei felt angry that, despite everything that the boy currently being beaten into a bloody pulp had done for her, Tsukasa didn't even help him. He knew Dolls and even Shinoda Chiaki, the Doll whose programming had ended, had done everything in her power to protect him, dying in the process.

Yin too, would never stand by when he was in trouble and she knew she could help and even July had done his best to be of assistance to both November and April. Gritting his teeth, he relieved his anger by brutally slitting the throat of one of the men, immediately following up with a kick to another man's back.

In the corner of his eyes he noticed November incapacitating two others and, secure in the knowledge that he was only going to have to deal with another two, he turned back to his own fights.

The man he had kicked had turned around and was trying to punch him, but the assassin easily blocked and rammed the knife into his chest.

The last of the men had waited in trying to shoot him, not wanting to accidentally hit his comrade, but he yelled enraged after seeing his friend be killed and shot recklessly at the Chinese man.

Hei used the corpse of the man he had killed as a shield, holding him up with one arm while ripping the knife out of the still warm body with the other, blood splattering on his face as he easily spun the blood-slicked blade in his hand and threw it at the man shooting at him. His hand slipped a little when the blade left his hand, causing his aim to be a little off, but it still hit with unbelievable accuracy, impaling the man in his chest.

He collapsed and Hei let go of the corpse he had been holding up as a shield, kneeling down beside November, who was taking a look at Kenji's injuries.

There was a long gash on the boy's side and his breathing was shallow, blood flowing from a wound on his head.

The assassin shrugged out of his jacket, folded it together and pressed it against the open wound. The injured youth flinched and slowly opened his eyes.

"Li-san…?"

The Chinese man smiled at the younger one gently while he thought about what he could do to stop the bleeding.

"How are you feeling? You took quite a beating."

He shot a quick look at November, who nodded at him, took out his cell-phone and retreated several steps, calling April (since her power was passive and she didn't want to endanger July, knowing that November was perfectly capable of taking care of himself) and telling her to come, bringing a first-aid kit.

"I'm really glad that you're alright. I thought you were dead when all those guys showed up."

Tears were gathering in Kenji's dark eyes and he smiled shakily through the pain he obviously felt.

"We don't die easily, so you didn't have to worry."

Hei kept his voice as gentle as possible, not wanting to upset the bleeding boy.

"I know. Is… is Tsukasa alright? I was trying to… protect her but…"

The assassin glared at the Doll, but kept the rest of his face soft.

"She's fine, don't worry, they didn't touch her."

Kenji smiled softly, obviously relieved to hear that he had been able to protect her. His eyes started to close again, his head tilting slightly, when they widened again unexpectedly, staring at something behind the dark haired assassin.

Startled Hei turned around, not having sensed anything wrong and stared at the barrel aimed at him, feeling stunned that the knife he had thrown hadn't killed the man he had been aiming for.

He knew he wouldn't be able to defend himself, not when the man was already pulling the trigger and he had nothing to throw or shield himself with.

November was shouting his name but this time the Brit wouldn't be able to help him.

It felt like everything was happening in slow motion as a disgusting, bloodstained smirk was shot at him by the dying man as his forefinger finished its way, making the gun recoil.

He imagined he could see the bullet racing towards him and his breath left his lungs as he realised that this was it – it was over.

Then there was a loud scream, he could make out the overlapping words of both 'Li-san' and 'Shengshun' and suddenly his sight of his would-be murderer was blocked by a body wearing a grey suit and a bright pink shirt.

The body jerked when the bullet hit it and collapsed like a doll with its strings cut, leaving Hei to stare at it in disbelief. Slowly he raised his head and looked at the man who had shot, who looked as surprised as the assassin felt he should be, before his eyes dulled and he grew limp, the gun leaving his hand and clattering on the floor.

He felt like he was suffocating, barely noticing that November was wrapping his arms around him, pulling him against the older man's chest, barely feeling the blonde's racing heart pounding against his own body.

He reached out with a trembling hand and turned Kenji's body around, noticing that it was still breathing. Hastily he extracted himself from November's arms and gripped the dark eyed boy tightly, shaking him and calling his name.

The youth smiled crookedly and whispered something in a broken voice and Hei had to lean in closely to understand what he was saying.

"Please take care of Tsukasa."

The assassin felt disbelief curse through his veins when he felt someone else kneel down beside him, gently pulling the boy from his arms.

It was the Doll Kenji had tried to protect that desperately and the assassin could only watch as she gently pressed her lips against his forehead, rocking the youth as the light in his eyes slowly died out.

The three of them sat there, unmoving, as the body of their friend, their protector grew cold and only the car arriving near them could interrupt them in their stupor.

Hei swallowed thickly, feeling bile rise up in his throat as November pried the Doll off Kenji and pushed her towards the car. He felt sick seeing the energetic and cheerful boy he had grown fond of in the last few days that lifeless.

The Brit grabbed his arm and pulled him to his feet softly telling him that they had to leave or they'd get into trouble and he followed, finally taking his eyes off the ex-Yakuza's corpse and climbing into the car.

He closed his eyes and wished he could feel something besides the disbelieving numbness he felt.

*+*+*

"Hitotsubashi was killed in a gang-fight and the Doll hasn't been recovered."

Hei made a noncommittal sound to show that he was listening and didn't let on that he knew more about this incident than Huang probably expected.

The reason the Doll hadn't been found was that the Chinese man had called Dog and had had her go to his niece. She could use some company and Tsukasa would be safe there – just as Kenji had asked.

At the thought of the boy he felt a dull ache in his chest, but it had faded over the last two days, after the incident had taken place.

He had been out drinking with April the day after it had happened and only November's timely interruption had prevented him from probably dying of alcohol-poisoning. As it was, he had spent the day before in bed, trying to recover from a hangover the size of China.

From the corner of his eyes he noticed that Mao was watching him and even Yin hadn't taken her eyes off him ever since he had shown up at the meeting – it was starting to annoy him. If the didn't pay attention to what they were doing, Huang would find out that there was something that the three of them were hiding from him and the assassin really didn't want that.

"It seems that your 'friend' was somehow involved with it. They want you to try and get something out of him, but they don't think you'll be successful. He is a pro and a Contractor after all – he wouldn't wake the mistake of telling you all about it when he's thinking that you're a civilian so you don't really have to try is my opinion."

Hei had to hold back a snort when he heard that. Because November had been busy the day after they had fought with the Yakuza trying to come up with a good explanation why he and April had used their powers, and the day after that, the assassin had felt too horrible to talk about serious things, the blonde hadn't had the opportunity yet to tell him about Contractors and the like, but Hei knew that it was only a matter of time until he did.

He didn't know why but he got the feeling that November would let him keep his memories of what had happened.

Now the assassin only had to decide if he wanted to tell the Brit about his own profession, but from what the blonde had seen two days ago, he should already know that Shengshun wasn't nearly as innocent or pure as he claimed to be.

"The syndicate already has a new henchman to manipulate so our work is over. Lay low until something new comes up."

The short and burly man left and didn't look back. Huang's attitude towards them had grown more accepting but he still didn't want to be in their proximity for more time than absolutely necessary.

Mao smirked a little. "If he knew he'd have a heart-attack."

The cat sounded smug and pleased, so Hei grabbed him by the back of his neck and threw him up the tree at which's base he was sitting.

The Contractor screeched, but the assassin ignored that and started to make his way home, patting Yin on the head when he passed her.

He had a date with November and he didn't want to miss it.

* * *

This is it for this chapter and I hope you enjoyed it despite the deaths.^^

As always, if you find any mistakes, please tell me and I'll do my best to fix them!

Yours,

TTF


	15. Intermission April

A/N.: Hi, this is an intermission and not a chapter. It's about Hei going drinking with April and talking about things that bother both of them.

I'm not sure about the characterization and it was pretty painful to write so if you don't like something, find mistakes or anything else, please tell me and I'll do my best to improve.

* * *

Grimacing slightly as a bitter taste invaded his already dulled senses, Hei took the next glass of whatever alcoholic beverage that April had ordered for him and downed it.

This time, instead of bitter, it was sickly sweet and had the assassin been in his right mind he would have put it down and walked out of the bar.

Had he been in his right mind, he never would have accepted April's offer to go drinking with her.

His sight blurry, he stared at the glass in front of him, wondering dimly when his drink had changed from sickly sweet into something else, but not really caring about it.

"So why did you finally accept my invitation?"

April's voice was steady and calm but the assassin could see that she was as drunk as he was. Smirking a little he decided that two could play that game and answered as steadily as the dark skinned woman sitting opposite him.

"Because it finally was too much."

Unfortunately, he wasn't sober enough to watch what he was saying.

Or maybe he was and didn't really care anymore.

In his drunken, hazed mind he really hoped that April wouldn't remember anything when she sobered up or he would be in trouble.

"What's too much?"

The chances for that were good though, if what November had told him was true.

_She has really high tolerance, but if you manage to get her drunk, she doesn't remember a thing the next day._

He watched as the amber eyed woman ordered another dozen drinks from a waiter and downed a cocktail that was too green a colour to be healthy.

"Everything. I thought I could bear it alone, without her, but it's difficult to live alone when you've lived for someone else your whole life."

The assassin stared at his empty glass, wishing that the waiter would hurry up with their order.

"Are you talking about your _ex_ -girlfriend?"

April emphasised the 'ex' and Hei couldn't help but chuckle at her assumption.

"No. My younger sister. I lived only for her sake and now that she is gone I don't know what to do. It's been five years already and everything I bottled up is slowly coming to the surface. It's all _her_ fault!"

The other Contractor was already too wasted to be surprised by the uncharacteristic outburst of her friend but even drunk she couldn't contain her insatiable curiosity.

"Whose fault?"

"Someone I trusted. Someone who betrayed me. Someone who is responsible for the disappearance of my sister. I… I think I even loved her at some point."

The dark haired man gripped the glass in his hand tight enough to break it and only luck prevented it from doing so.

"I hate her now though. I don't like being betrayed. It's painful and it happens far too often for me to be able to deal with it properly."

It was the first time that Hei admitted that he wasn't the perfect assassin, that the Black Reaper had weaknesses that people would be shocked to discover – that he was only human and as, or maybe more, easily hurt as other people, Contractor or not.

A band was starting to play in the background and April leant closer to him, wanting to hear what he said.

Even with his mask as Shengshun, he never offered a lot of personal information or anything about his past and from what November had told the woman about the younger man's skill in fighting and killing, it had to be an interesting one.

"I'm an MI6 agent and have supernatural powers."

The assassin arched an eyebrow when he heard that and shrugged slightly, assuming that April was as sober as he was (which was not at all) and replied.

"I know. I'm an assassin for a criminal syndicate that has a lot of use for me. I have powers too but while I use them a lot I don't like them."

His mouth had moved on its own and the dark haired man didn't even try to stop it. His current thought process was too dulled and jumbled to come up with a good reason to keep him quiet and so he talked.

He talked about his childhood and the trauma and fear of betrayal he had developed in it and he even told her about the time he and Pai had spent on the streets, just trying to survive until the next day in an environment that was practically lethal to young children.

Then he quieted, since a waiter was bringing another order (when had they drunk the last one?) and didn't start to talk again.

"My mother was an alcoholic. Because of that I've been drinking my whole life and started to take a liking to it. My mom wasn't scary but my father used to be violent. He hit us a lot and almost beat my mom to death once. That was ten years ago. I gained my powers then. The first thing I did was drown my father."

The dark skinned woman said all of that with a wistful smile on her face and instead of stopping, like Hei had done, she continued.

"My mom witnessed it. She called me a monster when all I had been trying to do was protecting her. I was a monster for that while the man that had beaten and tormented us was still her husband."

The smile on her face vanished and she looked almost sad for a moment before she gulped down another drink.

"I met Jack shortly after that. His 'name' is November by the way. He was already working his way up the ranks in the MI6 and he picked me up and convinced the higher ups that my powers would help him a lot in his missions – you've seen his power so you should know just how well we compliment each other. We didn't get along at first. He was too close to February, his mentor, to be close to anyone else and he was too work-orientated and professional to be something closer."

Hei smiled slightly, feeling his own curiosity rise when he heard that. He knew November as he was now and he had been told about the blonde's childhood, but never something like this.

"You sound disappointed."

Teasing slightly he was surprised when April smirked back at him.

"I was back then. When our kind has something they want, they try to take it regardless of what they have to destroy to get it. I wanted him all those years ago before I realised that he was too different from me to actually be what I needed to make me happy."

She smirked again when she noticed Hei's surprised face, knowing that he hadn't expected this at all.

"He didn't notice it at all and if he did, he hid it well. That changed about five years ago. He was betrayed by February and just after that July joined our team. He was that young back then, barely six years old and the missions we got then were that very dangerous. We didn't want him to be hurt, so we got our act together and got along better. Now we're almost a family."

The assassin smiled a little, knowing what she meant. He had watched the three of them often enough to know that despite their quarrels and differences they were close.

He couldn't deny that he envied them. He didn't think that they'd sell each other out if one of them got into trouble – not like his team.

The things that had happened recently had made him think more about it, but it hadn't changed his mind about his team-mates. He knew that they would sell him out would it save their own skins.

When something happened that they could cover up, they would do so without hesitation, but were Hei's treacherous acts to be discovered by the syndicate, he had no doubt that Huang would be the first one trying to offer information to the organisation.

The assassin was tired of being betrayed and sold out by people and he told the woman in front of him so.

"Is that why you always keep your distance? No matter how much you smile and laugh you never try to get closer to others. You've got lots and lots of trust issues, don't you?"

The dark haired man's eyebrows arched in surprise but then a strangely resigned smile crept on his face.

"You're right. I've been betrayed and hated by people for petty reasons you wouldn't believe and it never stops. I have to watch my back or the next time I turn around, there's someone standing there with a knife waiting to be rammed into my back."

April looked sad for a moment.

"You're more jaded and paranoid that people give you credit for. November won't hurt you though. You know what Contractors are but he isn't like others – he's softer, especially after meeting you. I never would have thought I would see the MI6's number one agent do things that he did. He risked his life to help Kenji, he sat at your bedside when you were hurt every day and you're driving him crazy with the distance you try to keep that desperately."

They were both silent as they tried to make sense of what they had been talking about.

"That woman whom you trusted – is she one of those that stabbed you in the back?"

Hei closed his eyes, his voice falling back to a toneless murmur.

"Yeah. She was our team-leader in South America five yeas ago. She somehow managed to get me to trust her and so I didn't question her orders that day, when she told me and another to return to our camp in the north. Then the Heaven's Gate vanished and the next thing I knew my employers had shipped me back to the base in China and I was in a hospital recovering from injuries I had no recollection of getting."

The amber-eyed woman had a strange expression on her face, almost as if she was trying to place something, but he couldn't dredge up the energy to care.

"How many others were in your team?"

Downing another drink, Hei's words were starting to slur.

"It was Amber, my sister, Carmine and I. We were the colour-quartet as we called ourselves. It was a stupid name. Childish too but I didn't know better back then."

"And on a battlefield even the most mundane things that normally wouldn't be amusing at all need to be viewed with a certain kind of hilarity to survive with one's sanity halfway in tact."

April's voice was as quiet as the assassin's in front of her and she did nothing to hide the shadows in her eyes and face when she remembered obviously unpleasant memories.

She shook her head to dispel the thoughts in her head and turned back to her drinking partner with a quiet smile.

"What do you think of November anyway? You don't refuse him but you somehow don't try to be active in your relationship either."

The dark skinned woman smirked a little, obviously curious about how Hei was going to answer. The assassin was quiet for some time, obviously thinking about what he was going to say before he replied.

"I'm not sure actually." He could almost feel April's eyebrows meet her hairline but ignored it in favour of taking a sip of his newest drink, some kind of concoction that tasted like cucumbers.

"He can bring my defences down when I don't want them to be and he can read me like only my sister was able to. It's unsettling sometimes, when I think about doing something only to turn around and have November ask me if he could do it for me instead without me saying anything."

Hei sighed deeply and pushed the cucumber-drink away, instead starting another one that tasted like very cheap vodka.

"I like him, I can't deny that and… he has become… important to me. I want to see where we could go if have we the time to find out."

The dark skinned woman nodded approvingly, though the dark haired man doubted that she could really process what he was saying anymore.

"You work for a criminal organisation, don't you? What made you decide that you wanted to work for them?"

The question made the assassin smile bitterly. He hadn't known what he had agreed to when he had been asked to join the syndicate.

He and Pai had only barely survived on the streets and only his sister's rather frequent use of her powers had kept them from becoming prostitutes and drug-dealers and the like. When someone had come to them and asked them if they wanted to join their organisation that employed people with extraordinary abilities Hei had been glad that at least Pai was to be cared for but he had tried his best to stay with her and when he had almost killed another Contractor who had been sent after him to dispose of witnesses who had been told about the syndicate, they had grown interested in him and his abilities.

It hadn't mattered that he didn't have supernatural powers – they had been interested in the things that he could do without them.

It had been an experiment at first. He was supposed to attend the same classes as his sister and nobody had really expected him to succeed but he had shot their expectations to pieces and excelled in everything they had wanted him to do.

Infiltration, sabotage, languages, martial arts, killing, hurting, fighting, torture and everything else they asked him to do was learned and done swiftly, mercilessly and without hesitation.

In the end, they had given him the same level of difficulty of his missions as his sister had, who had become one of their strongest and most feared agents in her time. Because of her remuneration, looks and demeanour some of her former partners had started to call her Sleeping Princess and Hei, who had later gained the name Black Reaper, was rarely separated from her.

Despite all of that, he had been shocked when one of his first tests had been the murder of another agent. He had been told that, if he wanted to work together with his sister, he was going to have to become as mercilessly as she was and she had killed without hesitation.

He had obeyed but the startled look on his first victim's face when he had snapped her neck had forever been branded into his brain.

Shaking his head to clear it of the bad memories, he replied.

"I didn't know what they did when they recruited me. I learned it quickly after joining, but at the time it was already too late for me. I couldn't back out after I killed for the first time. I had soiled my hands for my sister and I didn't have any option other than continuing to do so to stay by her side."

April looked sad as she downed another drink, this time one of her beloved beer-cans.

"You're softer than you think you are and less soiled than others too. I've had a time in my life when I loved killing. I loved the way victims screamed and begged for their lives before I shot them or killed them in another way and I loved to watch November kill, his targets shattering into little pieces around us after he was finished with them. You never did that, did you? You probably cried yourself to sleep after your first murder, didn't you? You strike me as that kind of person."

Hei chuckled a little when he heard that.

"You think too highly of me. It's true that I never enjoyed what I was doing, but I never cried about it. I haven't cried since I was a small child and nothing that happened could make me do such a thing again."

The amber-eyed woman only continued to smile sadly when she heard that.

"Just because you didn't shed tears doesn't mean you didn't cry."

In that moment the assassin decided that they both had had too much to drink already (though that didn't stop him from finishing another few drinks, including the cucumber-tasting-one) since he could actually understand what the slightly older woman was trying to say to him.

Neither of the two said anything for the next half an hour or so, where they got drunk to the point where they were more or less completely incoherent.

That was the state the two of them were in when November found them.

*+*+*

Cursing violently under his breath the blonde MI6 agent dragged his dark haired lover to the younger one's flat. He had already left April at their hotel room and he was startled and impressed when he had noticed just how drunk the two were.

Finally arriving in front of the door, November swallowed a little thickly as he rummaged through Shengshun's pockets looking for his keys. He had noticed below that the landlady and her husband were away on a short two day trip and from what he knew most of the tenants worked at night so he and his lover were all alone in the building…

Shaking his head and cursing himself for even thinking of taking advantage of his lover when the younger man was drunk, he opened the door and dragged Shengshun inside, letting the door fall shut after them.

He put the keys on the small table beside the door and gently lowered the dark haired male on the floor while he relieved himself off his shoes and started to prepare the futon for the younger one to sleep in.

Behind him he could hear a low groan that signalled the other one' awakening and he hurried up a little, finishing just in time to turn around and see Shengshun's eyes open a little.

"November…"

It was a mere whisper but it send a shock through the older one's system as the MI6 agent wondered how on earth the younger man could know that name.

As if reading his mind, his unasked question was answered.

"April told me that that's your name."

Another shock went through him, but this time the cause was the open and unguarded smile directed at him, the dark haired man's eyes soft with unnamed emotions.

Taking a deep breath and cursing his libido he pulled his lover upright and guided him to the – very inviting looking – futon now spread out in the room.

He lowered the younger male on it and pulled off Shengshun's shoes and socks, leaving his feet bare as he steeled his resolve and started to unbutton the dark haired one's shirt.

"Are you going to be alright when I leave?" Distracting himself from the amount of soft, silky, pale skin in front of him, he lowered his voice and directed his eyes to the midnight sky coloured orbs beneath him.

His answer was another soft smile and two hands that pulled him down to his lover, their lips brushing against each other clumsily.

"'M better than fine. Stay with me."

Shengshun's voice was a mere whisper, a murmur against the older one's lips and November savoured the feeling before his damned rational mind told him that saying such a thing was completely out of character for the younger man.

By the time he was listening to it, he had lost his own jacket, tie and west and was pushing his lover's shirt off his shoulders.

Shengshun groaned in his mouth, his hands shakily trying to unfasten the buttons of his button-down shirt and the Brit was more than tempted to ignore the voice, one of his hands palming the younger one's erection through his jeans as their mouths parted and November's lips started to trail down the dark haired man's throat, sucking on the point he could feel the other's jugular vein, but not leaving any marks yet.

It was only the sound that Shengshun made then that prevented him from continuing. A strangled sob ripping itself from his lover's mouth that had nothing to do with the pleasure the Chinese man obviously felt.

The blonde buried his face in the other's neck, breathing in the strange mixture of alcohol, soap and a scent uniquely Shengshun and trying to calm himself for what was going on.

Then he put one of his hands beside the younger man's head and cupped his face with the other, raising his body off the dark haired one's body completely with each of his knees beside his lover's hips. He doubted he would be able to resist were one of his limbs still touching him.

"What's going on? This isn't like you. What did you talk about with April that caused you to be like this?"

November had expected tears on Shengshun's face, the sound he had heard having been too heartbroken for him to expect anything else, but he was surprised when the younger one's face was clear of tears.

Instead there was a hurting, almost angry expression on his face and for a moment the Chinese man seemed completely sober.

"I was thinking of Kenji, Tsukasa and my sister and how they all died. I couldn't save any of them despite my efforts – I was simply too weak to help them even though I promised them I would."

The blonde was even more surprised when he heard the honest and sad answer, having expected another elusive reply that kept him away from his lover's innermost emotions.

It seemed that Shengshun wasn't a happy drunk and the large quantity of alcohol had loosened and lowered his guard to the point where he had no problem of talking about things that bothered him.

For the first time November had the feeling that the dark haired man was being himself and not wearing one of his many masks and, looking into the eyes that held an almost vulnerable light in them, he cursed slightly as he fell even harder than before.

Sighing he fell beside the Chinese male and gathered the shorter one in his arms, trying to ignore his own problem that made his pants uncomfortably tight.

"Then sleep and don't think about them."

He murmured these words into the younger man's ear and then pressed a gentle kiss on Shengshun's temple, continuing to comfort him with gentle words and a low voice that lulled the hurt man into sleep.

When he was sure that his lover was finally asleep, he disentangled himself from him and stood, looking down at the evenly breathing form of the one who had grown to be one of his most important people.

He had knew that he could have asked any of the questions that plagued his mind, but he had decided that he shouldn't get his answers with such dirty tricks.

He was going to find his answers when Shengshun was lucid and completely conscious or else it wouldn't be fair to either one of them.

For a moment he wondered when he had started to care about things like 'fair' but then laughed quietly when he answered his own question.

_It was when I ran into a man with dark hair and the most beautiful blue eyes I've ever laid eyes on._

He completely undressed the Chinese man and then redressed himself after covering the other with a blanket.

Taking one last look at the sleeping form and groaning slightly at the thought of the shower he was going to take when back at his room, he closed the door behind him and finally smiled softly.

_Sweet dreams Shengshun._

*+*+*

When Hei woke up he cursed himself and the truck that had hit him and left him for death.

His head was aching and he had to touch it to make sure that it hadn't been split in two while he tried to remember what he had done the night before to feel like someone was hitting him with a large mallet.

How he knew that whatever it was had been the night before?

Because the sunlight that was throwing daggers into his eyes and up his head was shining through his window and from the angle of it, it was probably about 11 o'clock in the morning.

A vile curse left his lips when he remembered that he had agreed to go drinking with April in a moment of temporary insanity and he tried to remember about what they had talked.

He couldn't remember though and after half an hour of brooding he finally gave it up as a lost cause, though he did wonder how he had ended up in his own bed.

Shrugging it off as not important and trusting – hoping – that even inebriated he knew better than to talk about things that could get him killed, he finally got out of bed and started to get ready for the day.

It startled him a little that for some reason he felt better about Kenji and Tsukasa. Ever since he had failed to protect them he had started to feel feelings about Pai creep back into his mind and he had never known just how to deal with those, but now he unexpectedly felt better.

Smiling a little he stretched, wincing when his head started to hurt even more and went to the bathroom to wash his face and brush his teeth to get the vile taste in his moth out.

Whatever had happened the night before – he was grateful that it had made him feel better – speaking in an emotional sense, since he doubted that he would be able to be of any use to anyone with the headache pounding in his skull.

*+*+*

April groaned when she opened her eyes, feeling the unwelcome but familiar feeling of a hangover trying to kill her brain.

It had been some time since she had had one of those and so she tried to remember what had happened the night before, but couldn't remember anything other than going into a bar with Shengshun.

For a moment she could almost hear parts of their conversation – _'…assassin…', '…November…', '…Heaven's Gate…' – _ but then it was gone again and she shook her head, feeling slightly disorientated before she shot up to her feet and ran to the toilet two rooms from hers.

The next time she was going drinking with someone who could keep up with her, she was going to cut back on the alcohol a little.

She had the feeling that the things they had talked about had been incredibly revealing, interesting and personal, but that feeling vanished while she emptied her stomach's contents into the toilet in front of her.

When she was finished she stared into the bowl sadly.

_Such a waste of perfectly good alcohol._

The she shrugged and jumped back to her feet.

It was time for breakfast and what was better for a hangover than a can of good old beer?

* * *

I hope you liked it, and as always, thanks for reading!

Yours,

TTF


	16. Chapter 15

A/N: Sorry about the long wait, I've been busy with tests and studying. I hope this chapter isn't too odd (despite it being a mixture of fluff, crime story and soap opera) but please tell me if you find a mistake or something else that could be improved.

Another thing is, that I want to thank the ones who reviewed. It really motivated me to write something (though I probably should have used that time to study) and many of your comments made me feel really happy - not only for this chapter but every one.

This chapter is dedicated to everyone who read, reviewed and stuck with me until now and I hope you won't be disappointed with this chapter (since it really does feel a little odd...).

Thanks!

* * *

After his meeting with his team-mates had ended, Hei slowly went back to his apartment. He really wasn't looking forward to the conversation he would have with November that day and while he knew it was childish, he didn't try to walk faster than his current pace.

When he arrived he could already see November's car standing in its usual place and, sighing resignedly, he walked up the stairs and to his room.

The blonde was waiting in front of it, leaning against the wall and looking as tired as Hei felt. Somehow the assassin thought it was comforting that the Brit wasn't unaffected by everything that had happened the last few days.

The MI6 agent nodded at him and Hei copied the gesture while opening the door in silence.

None of the talked as they settled down at the small table that the dark haired man had in his room and the atmosphere was slowly starting to grow awkward.

"I told you that we should have a talk about the things that happened when we helped Tsukasa escape and I guess that I should start."

Hei was relieved that he wasn't going to be interrogated just now and he wondered what he should tell November. He was an excellent liar, he wasn't worried about that, but the problem was that he didn't want to lie to his lover.

He wasn't sure how the blonde would react to the knowledge that he was an assassin working for the syndicate that the Brit had tried to uncover for such a long time so he decided that he would wait until November finished his own explanation before he said anything he would regret.

"You wanted to explain how you froze the Yakuza you fought."

The MI6 agent nodded with a serious look on his face.

"I'm going to tell you everything about it so I'd appreciate it if you kept quiet while I talk. I'll answer every other question you might have later."

Hei nodded in agreement and waited patiently for the explanation for something he had already known for years.

"You know that the time after the two Gates appeared in the world was troublesome. There were many large accidents, the crime-rate rose, government and organisations were in uproar and the world's population was panicking.

For quite some time nobody knew what was going on and the true nature of the Gates still hasn't been found out.

What normal people don't know, however, is that, ever since the appearance of these two areas, people with strange powers have appeared.

I'm one of them – April and July are two others.

Do you want me to prove what I'm saying?"

November waited, obviously thinking that his younger lover needed some proof, but Hei only shook his head, smiling slightly.

"You already showed me what you can do when you shattered that Yakuza into thousand pieces, that's all I need to know to believe you. It also would explain some of the stranger things I've seen so far."

The Chinese man didn't elaborate what he meant with 'strange things' but after hearing about his past, November assumed that it was about the Contractor that had been the cause of the younger man's misfortune – his brother had only kicked him out because they had been attacked by a Contractor after all and Shengshun had witnessed the attack.

The MI6 agent looked a little surprised by the faith the younger man had in his words but continued to talk without hesitation.

"These people with powers can be put into two categories. April and I belong to the one called Contractors.

We are called that because, after we use them, we have to do something as remuneration, as payment for having used them. Most of the things a Contractor has to do are useless and make little sense.

Mine is to smoke a cigarette, April has to drink alcohol and I once met someone who had to jump on one foot ten times as remuneration.

Contractors are usually killing-machines who only do things that are of use to themselves. They are loyal to nobody, emotionless and they are the epitome of rationalism.

You should never trust any Contractor other than me or April."

Hei couldn't help but arch an eyebrow when he heard that and asked a question that had been bothering him ever since getting to know the older man better.

"What changed you then? You said that most Contractors are emotionless and rational but neither you nor April strike me as people like that."

the Brit smirked a little when he heard that.

"So you don't think that I'm particularly rational?"

His tone was teasing and the assassin thought that the blonde was relieved to take a break from the serious topic.

"No, not particularly, after all you did stalk me for your own curiosity, you helped me with Mei and her daughter, you helped me with Tsukasa even though you were against it, you helped me in a fight when you could have escaped, you obviously care about April and July and you lose your temper as easily when April teases you as everyone else.

That doesn't seem emotionless, rational and disloyal to me."

The Chinese man was surprised when all he got in reply was a gentle smile and a cryptic reply.

"Maybe I'll tell you about it sometime but for now you'll have to be satisfied when I tell you that it snuck up on me and, had I known what was going to happen when I started doing the things that were a trigger for it, I probably would have braced myself and done the exact same thing again.

Though what softened me up before that was July. The first time I met him he was just an infant and before he came to our team he had been with some guys that had treated him badly. So I stood in front of this tiny boy who was covered in bruises and for the first time in years I wanted to keep someone safe."

Both were quiet for some time as they thought about what had been told.

"Well, I guess it's time to tell you about the other category, the Dolls. July and Tsukasa are called Dolls – people usually say that they have neither emotions nor souls and that they are only empty shells of humans, but I'm not sure about that.

Ever since we've come to Japan, July has changed. He sometimes stares at a reflective surface and looks like he's talking to someone but won't answer when asked about it. He also said that April and I are his friends and made independent decisions that helped us out several times."

Hei forced his face into a confused look and cursed himself for feeling guilty when he asked "He talked to someone? What does that have to do with a reflective surface?"

November looked surprised for a moment before shaking his head a little.

"Sorry, I got ahead of myself. The power of a Doll is that they can send out observation spectres through a medium, observe or look for people and talk to other Dolls through them. They are useful in espionage and searches and since only other Dolls or Contractors can see them they can also be used to spy on normal people.

The most common medium is wire and metal while July has one of the rarer ones – reflective surfaces like mirrors, glass or sometimes water."

Hei nodded slowly as if contemplating the new information before bringing the conversation to the point he had dreaded. He doubted that November was going to try to erase his memories after explaining everything, but he couldn't be sure.

"It's amazing that nobody knows of this. I would have thought that it would be impossible to keep something like this secret. Someone has to have witnessed something like this and written about it or something."

The MI6 agent nodded slowly a serious expression on his face.

"That's because every time there is a witness, their memories get erased by either a government or an organisation. No Contractor wants a normal person finding out about this whole thing. Humans are too narrow-minded to deal with a strange and powerful existence like the one of Contractors."

The assassin nodded again and then asked another question.

"Are you going to erase my memories?"

The Brit looked even more serious and the younger man braced himself for whatever answer he was going to get.

"I should. No person that various governments or organisations don't approve of can know about this. That's the written and unwritten law in every country on earth and the punishment for breaking it is worse than the one for murder."

The two men looked at each other calmly as the blonde stopped and stared at his lover calmly, letting what he had said sink in.

"But I won't. I know you're not the type to run your mouth about things that should stay secret and I trust you to keep quiet about this."

Hei swallowed when he heard that and had to avert his eyes.

He felt horrible for lying to the older man who was risking quite a bit with telling him about this and he had to grit his teeth to stop himself for simply confessing everything to the Brit.

November might trust 'Li Shengshun', but he definitely didn't trust 'BK-201' or 'Hei'. He didn't even know that 'Hei' existed, since the Chinese man had always kept his work and private life strictly separated.

Not that he had had much of a private life in the last few years, but he kept a distance between the killer called 'Hei', or as the police knew him 'BK-201', and the man called 'Hei' – now that that distance was vanishing he wasn't sure what to do.

"Are you alright? You look pale."

Startled he looked up into a concerned pair of kingfisher blue eyes and had to fight to keep his expression neutral. Something must have slipped though, because the blonde smiled tiredly.

"What I told you bothers you, doesn't it? If you want to I could leave you alone for a few weeks to think about it."

The assassin cursed himself and the horror that spread through him when he heard that. November didn't understand that what he had been told didn't bother him at all – it was his own inability to tell the truth, to trust the older man, which bothered him.

He felt guilty for lying to the man that had been nothing but honest ever since they had started their relationship while Hei had done nothing but lie and deceive ever since they met.

Taking a deep breath the assassin put his hands on the table and leaned over it to press his lips against the older man's tightly, ignoring the surprised noise the Brit made before two arms pulled him closer, forcing him to put one of his knees on the low table to keep his balance.

The kiss grew more and more heated until the younger man pressed against November chest, breaking it breathlessly and he retreated back to his own seat.

"What you told me doesn't bother me. I've known you before and you telling me about Contractors and Dolls doesn't bother me at all, I just…"

Taking a deep breath Hei hid his shaking hands under the table and forced himself to continue.

"There are things that I haven't told you about yet. And I'm not sure how you'll-"

The Chinese man was cut off by November's cell-phone and he recognised the tune as the one the blonde had given the police station.

Forcing a smile the assassin told the older man to answer it.

"If it's Misaki-san calling it's probably important. She wouldn't call without good reason."

The moment was gone and he wasn't sure when – if – it would come again.

"Are you sure? I can call her back later."

Closing his eyes Hei nodded, the smile still plastered on his face.

"Yes, I'm sure. Don't worry – we can talk some other time."

November nodded and climbed to his feet as he answered the phone.

"Misaki, hello! How nice of you to call! What can I-"

Taking another deep breath, he listened to the door of his apartment closing as the Brit stepped outside for a moment and the Chinese man put his head in his hands, pressing his fingers against his eyes.

"Coward."

The disgust in his voice was usually reserved for the Contractors he killed but at that moment he knew he wasn't any better than them.

Contractors were liars and traitors and November had been completely right that nobody other than the blonde and April could be trusted.

*+*+*

Mesmerized he stared at the darkly clad figure standing at the bottom of a street-lamp. The hair cut in a familiar fashion, the body older but still recognizable and the face…

He would always remember the face that sometimes still haunted him.

Laughing. Annoyed. Stoic. Angry. Upset and trying to hide it. Stubborn.

He stared at the one he had been trying to find and slowly walked closer to the man in front of him. He hadn't been noticed yet and because of this he was able to witness something that would change him.

Another figure stepped in front of the man he knew and was obviously threatening him. Then something happened that he hadn't expected.

The dark haired one grabbed his attacker's face and a bright, silvery white light emitted from him while his eyes glowed a demonic red.

Horrified he stumbled backwards, wanting to scream but finding himself unable to do so, as the on who had attacked the man collapsed after shaking and screaming.

He had been betrayed. He had come to this place to talk to the black clothed man, to try and make sense of things but now he knew that he had been betrayed.

The man he had once known didn't exist anymore and had been replace by a monster, a demon, just like many other he had known and loved.

He stumbled away from the scene he had witnessed, shocked and horrified and betrayed and he wanted that man to die.

He wanted all these monsters in human form to die, but especially that man. He had trusted him, he had loved him and he had always regretted how they had parted ways the last time.

Remembering what had happened in the past, he didn't realise that he had started to follow a young man who was obviously drunk and had walked out of a club.

He had dark hair and dark eyes. He couldn't make out their colour in the dimly lit street they had suddenly entered, but in his mind they had turned into a demonic red, as a passing car illuminated the boy's form in a white light before it vanished.

That was already enough.

The next thing he knew, he was standing in front of a corpse – its features were indistinguishable and the body brutally beaten.

He could still recognize the boy he had followed though.

Panic gripped him before he calmed himself.

Why should he feel afraid?

He had only slain a monster, a demon. He should be hailed a hero!

But then another thought gripped him. He had slain a demon, but for others it would look like he had murdered a human.

Taking another look at the corpse at his feet and wiping blood off his smirking face, a plan was slowly starting to form in his head.

He wanted the monster that had betrayed him to die and he wanted to be the one to kill it after getting the answers he wanted.

He wanted it to suffer just as he had and he was going to savour its pain.

So he started to get to work.

He was going to have a lot to do if he wanted his plan to be successful.

*+*+*

If there was one thing that November 11, Contractor extraordinaire hated, it was working overtime. He had long since grown used to the strange hours an MI6 agent was required to keep but he always managed to get a good amount of free-time out of his superiors.

Another thing he hated was deranged people and crimes of passion that he had to make sense of – as a rational person and as someone who was about as in touch with his feelings as a rock, it was stressful, exhausting and annoying to figure out what a killer's motives and psyche were, that even normal people didn't really understand.

The thing he had come to loathe most though, and which – unfortunately – happened quite often, was Li Shengshun being harmed, in danger or injured.

It was just his luck that he had had to deal with all three of his dislikes the whole week and his mood was as rotten as it could be.

At the beginning of the week, Section 4 had been called to a murder-scene that had connections to BK-201. His star had reacted at the place and the night where a man had been murdered and there was no doubt in anyone's mind that he had been the killer.

What had been strange though, and what had unsettled November, was that a second murder, only a few streets away from the crime-scene, had taken place, this one brutal and strange.

A young man had been killed, beaten to death around the same time BK-201 had been around. That wasn't the strange thing though – it was the way the corpse had been arranged that was disturbing.

One of the police's profilers had said that the crime itself had been one of passion and the perpetrator (probably a man considering the strength needed to beat an obviously fit and healthy youth to death) had taken an opportunity that had arisen without thinking and had been blinded by anger.

The way the corpse had been arranged though, had been obviously been coldly calculated – the corpse had been arranged into the roman letter 'T', with the arms, the upper body and part of the thighs forming the base and the rest of the legs broken and twisted to form the top.

It was disturbing to look at and what made it even more horrifying was the fact that the youth held a clear resemblance to one Li Shengshun.

When Misaki had given him the file of the victim she had been pale and obviously disturbed and as soon as he had taken a look at the photograph there he had known why she had looked that way.

The victim had been young, eighteen years old, pale-skinned, had black hair and dark brown, almost black eyes – even the facial structure was similar.

It had sent a shock through the Brit and he had given in to the urge of going to see Shengshun earlier than they had agreed upon.

It had been two weeks since they had talked about November's line of work and what he, April and July actually were and he had been both surprised and pleased that the younger one had accepted everything.

It was only a few hours after he had left Shengshun that he noticed that the dark haired male hadn't looked particularly _surprised_ .

In fact, the younger man had even wanted to talk to him about something and while they had been interrupted by November's phone, the blonde couldn't get the guilty, bothered expression that Shengshun had had on his face out of his head.

The Chinese man had obviously been afraid of his reaction to something and it had made the MI6 agent wonder what kind of topic could come up after talking about Contractors, gates and Dolls that could make the younger one feel that way.

It had made him think about things which should be impossible and not even considered, but despite telling himself that it was only a coincidence, he hadn't been able to truly convince himself of it.

Something had always been nagging at the back of him mind, telling him that there was something odd about the younger man but he had never been able to figure it out and later he had been to content with the situation to think about it much.

When he had seen the way Shengshun fought, back when they had tried to help Kenji and Tsukasa, when he had seen the way the Chinese man had killed without hesitation, he had known that he couldn't ignore it anymore and together with that realisation had come a thought that hadn't left him since.

_He moves like BK-201._

The Brit sighed as he thought about that and while it was unpleasant he turned his thoughts to the rest of the victims. It was probably a cruel thing to think, but investigating this string of murders was a good distraction, also because the faster he caught the killer, the sooner Shengshun would be safe.

One victim had been a small boy, about six or seven years old and he had been nailed to a wooden post, and around him the letter 'R' had been written in blood.

Because it had happened in an abandoned factory, only a letter addressed to the police department had enabled them to find the corpse.

Nothing in the letter had carried evidence that could lead them to the perpetrator – the paper was a normal run-of-the-mill photocopying paper and since the note had been written on a computer it was impossible to tell who had written it.

The murderer had even avoided leaving fingerprints and since nothing had been found at the crime-scenes the police was feeling frustrated.

The killer didn't slip up like others had done and in just one and a half week they had killed six people, which was a new record.

The third murder had happened at night in a rarely visited part of the local park. A middle aged man, also with dark hair and dark eyes had been strung up upside-down on a lamppost at night, several wounds on his body and left to bleed out, his arms bound to his body in a strange fashion. It had looked like a disturbing version of the Tarot card 'The Hanged Man'.

Around the scene all the other lamp-posts had been destroyed, and only the one with the corpse hanging from it had been left in tact, creating a strangely surreal feeling. Because the part of the park was usually avoided by people by day and night because of a bad reputation, the corpse had been found at night by a hooker and her client.

The ground beneath it had been a dark reddish brown, the blood already dry when the corpse had been found.

In the corpse's torso a curved 'A' had been carved, obviously while the victim had still been alive.

The police hated the fact that they had a serial-killer on their hands and it had surprised November a little that, while Contractors were also considered Sociopaths and inhuman killing-machines, they were still preferred to human serial-murderers.

_It's probably because they can see Contractors as inhuman and be done with it while a normal murderer makes them wonder about human nature._

His lips curled in disgust at the thought and he climbed to his feet and grabbed his coat as he walked out of the station and made his way to Shengshun's flat.

The younger man had again gotten a job where he had to work at night and November spent most of the day that he didn't spend working (sometimes he even brought his files with him) at his lover's place, trying to soothe the anxiousness he felt every time the Chinese man went out alone at night.

April had already teased him about being overprotective, but the blonde couldn't help himself.

He didn't want the next picture of a victim to be the one of his lover and while his team-mate teased him, he knew that on some nights she went to the bar that Shengshun worked at to keep an eye on him.

He also knew that July was tracking the dark haired man's movements almost constantly and he was grateful for that.

Parking his car in the usual place he made his way to the younger one's apartment smirking slightly when he slid the duplicate key he had gotten into the lock.

After he had waited for Shengshun for almost two hours in the rain some days ago after he had heard about the second victim, the Chinese man had sighed in exasperation and given it to him, telling him that he should wait inside if November wanted to see him that badly.

The MI6 agent didn't know whether or not the dark haired man knew about the murders that had happened and if he was able to connect his lover's sudden clinginess (as April called it) with the pictures of the victims that were shown in practically every newspaper, which proclaimed the uselessness of the police.

Shengshun didn't behave differently than usual and the blonde suspected that, while the Chinese man knew about what had November that edgy, he thought he could take care of himself.

The Brit knew from what he had seen the other day that the younger one was a capable fighter, but he couldn't help but worry – even the best could be caught off guard.

The MI6 agent left his shoes by the entrance and entered the living area, pausing only to let his eyes adjust to the dark.

As predicted since it was still before noon, Shengshun was still asleep lying on his futon, the blanket pulled almost completely over his head.

The blonde smiled softly as he quietly sat down beside the younger man's head, pulling the blanket away from his face.

The first few times he had walked in on a not-injured, sober Shengshun, the Chinese man had shot up, immediately wide awake and one hand reaching to his thigh as if reaching for something until he relaxed when he noticed who it was that had woken him.

That had repeated several times, the reactions getting less and less alarmed until he barely stirred when November was the one coming into his vicinity.

It made the blonde happy that he was trusted enough to be allowed to come that close when the younger man was defenceless and whenever he watched the dark haired one sleeping he felt a surge of fury and protectiveness rise within him at the thought of anyone harming this man.

Taking another look at the relaxed face of his lover, he opened one of the files he had brought with him and continued to read where he had left off.

The next victim had been a young man – as the others, he had been dark haired and dark eyed and had a similar facial structure to the other victims – and he had been found near a club that sounded familiar to November for some reason.

Ignoring that feeling for the moment, he let his eyes trail the words that made his stomach clench in disgust.

The victim had been tied up and gutted alive, the contents of his stomach pulled out of the body and been made to look like an 'I'. Again it had happened in the middle of the night – the corpse had been found in the morning by one of the workers leaving the club with the backdoor.

The victim had been gagged to prevent him from screaming and the expression on his frozen face had been pure, unadulterated loathing and terror.

That was another thing that bothered the Brit.

Friends of the victim had said that he had been a good fighter who never went down without a fight and he had been a black-belt in karate. They had also said that he hadn't liked alcohol and only went along because of the recent string of murders and he had been concerned about his friends.

That meant that the killer had to be someone strong and skilled – both things made November uneasy and he hated that feeling.

Taking a deep breath, he skipped the details about the victim's personal life that were of no consequence to him (and he had already read them a dozen times anyway) and continued with the next one.

The next one had been a young boy, barely thirteen years old, and he had been killed a lot quicker than the others. Forensics had said that he had been killed by a blow to the head and anything else had been done post-mortem.

Not that there were many wounds. The murderer had split open the child's head, ripped out the brain and formed the letter with the brain-mass.

It was another 'T'.

The next victim had been even more difficult to stomach since it was obvious that it had been held captive for some time.

It had been another young man, this time around twenty years old and his whole skin had been pulled off while he had still been alive. The cause of death had been blood loss from various stab wounds in the abdomen. The only skin left on the body had been the face and a circle on the back of the young man, forming an 'O'.

By that time it was easy to guess what the word the killer was trying to build was and the Brit couldn't help but wish that whoever had betrayed that man (he doubted that the killer was a woman) had finished the job and killed him off too.

Whoever the traitor was, he didn't want Shengshun to be the last letter.

As if sensing that November's thought had taken a turn for the worse, the Chinese man slowly opened his eyes and turned his head, looking at his loved dazedly, not really registering that the blonde was really beside him.

The MI6 agent watched amused as the younger one obviously contemplated going back to sleep and, to make things easier for him, the Brit leaned down and gently kissed the younger man, running one of his hand through the soft dark hair.

He could feel the lips beneath his own turn into a smile and retreated to look at the rare sight before him.

While Shengshun was more expressive than he had been – more genuinely expressive – he was still rather stoic and a completely unguarded smile that reached his eyes was something rare and precious to see.

"Good morning."

Returning the lazy smile with one of his own, November replied gently, not wanting to break the atmosphere between them.

"Hey. Did you sleep well?"

The younger man murmured in agreement and slowly sat up, stretching when he had done so.

"When did you go to sleep? You look tired."

"One of my co-workers didn't come to his shift, so I was asked to fill in for him."

Instead of getting up, Shengshun simply yawned and lay down again.

"I got home at dawn and it took me some time to fall asleep."

November frowned when he heard that. He didn't like the fact that his lover was walking around alone when there was a killer on the loose and only the fact that the younger man could fight and July was tracking his movements kept him from asking the other to quit his job and look for work that didn't keep him up at night.

But now that he thought about it, while all the victims had been killed at night, only the third victim had been out at night. All the others had been living normal lives as students or workers and had kept normal hours.

The MI6 agent closed his eyes, feeling a headache starting to pound in his temples.

He knew that there was something he was missing that connected the killed ones, but he couldn't remember what it was.

A pair of hands on his head startled him and he opened his eyes to find Shengshun sitting again, his fingers massaging the older man's temples.

"You look as tired as I feel. When did _you_ go to bed?"

November smirked a little when his question was returned.

"That's easy. I didn't. Now what kept your co-worker from showing up at work? I hope it was something urgent."

Shengshun hesitated a little before he shrugged nonchalantly.

"Since he normally isn't a slacker it had to be something like that."

The blonde's eyes narrowed. The younger man obviously knew what had happened and since he didn't want to talk to him about it, the Brit knew that he wasn't going to like it.

"Alright. Spill. What happened that you don't want to tell me about?"

"What makes you think that something happened?"

There was a guilty look in the Chinese man's eyes. It was a look that November had seen more and more often lately and it usually appeared whenever Shengshun was avoiding a question.

The MI6 agent knew that his lover was a good liar and used that ability whenever it suited him, but lately the younger one had started to avoid lying and it turned out that he wasn't nearly as capable at telling half-truths as he was at lying outright.

It gave the blonde an advantage that he didn't seem to want to lie anymore and it also made him feel a little happier to know that Shengshun didn't want to deceive him but it made him wonder what had triggered these reactions.

The only thing he could think of was that, whatever the younger man had wanted to tell him when they had talked two weeks ago was still on his mind and it made him wonder even more.

Giving the Chinese man a look that clearly said that he didn't buy the excuse in the least made the dark haired man sigh and give in.

"There was a murder near the club that I work in and since the victim looked a lot like my colleague he was scared that he was going to be killed next."

Shengshun didn't look him in the eyes when he said that and November sucked in a breath when he realised why the name of the club that the third victim had frequented had sounded that familiar – it was the one where his lover was working as a bartender.

The Brit was angry.

No, that was too mild a word – he was furious both with himself and with the younger man who had hidden something like that.

He should have known about the club when he had first heard its name and he couldn't believe that the dark haired one was still working in it when he could obviously be targeted.

He also couldn't believe that neither April nor July had told him about it and that the Chinese man was obviously working there despite knowing about the serial killer.

Angrily he glared at his lover and snapped a furious question.

"What do you think are you doing you idiot! Do you want to get killed?"

Unfortunately he had forgotten that Shengshun had a temper too and wasn't going to stand for being yelled at like this.

"I'm working, that's what I'm doing! I knew you were going to try and force me to quit, that's why I didn't tell you about it!"

The dark haired one glared right back and November would have been startled by the intensity of it hadn't he been that angry.

"Damn right are you going to quit! I'm asking again – Do you want to be killed? Are you even thinking straight? God damn it!"

This time it was Shengshun's turn to be startled. It was rare for the older man to curse around him and it cleared his head enough to reply a little more calmly.

"I know that most of the murders have been around the club and that several of the victims have been regulars there, but I can take care of myself in case you haven't noticed it yet."

That snapped November out of his anger and he stared at his lover in disbelief.

"What did you say?"

"I heard that the first victim was a regular there and the third, fourth and sixth used to go there a lot too, but-"

He was cut off by the MI6 agent's sudden motion as the blonde grabbed his files and took another look at the personal information he had already read through a hundred times.

What Shengshun had said was true – almost all of the victims had visited the club at one point or another and whenever the club wasn't mentioned, it was said that the person liked to go out a lot.

The two children didn't fit the profile however, but when he took a closer look, the fifth victim lived nearby and his parents said that he sometimes took their dog for a walk at night. Since it wasn't a bad neighbourhood and the dog was large and fiercely protective of the boy they hadn't worried much but the kid had been grabbed right after school had ended so nobody could have done anything.

It wasn't far-fetched that the kid had been seen by the murderer while out and had then been ambushed the next day.

The second victim, the child, had an older brother who looked a lot like him. The brother was just at the right age for going to clubs – maybe the killer had followed the brother home, had seen the kid and taken him while on the way to school.

November was stunned when he realised that he had finally found the connection between them all – the club called 'The Ravenous'.

Completely forgetting his anger, he smirked triumphantly, grabbed a bewildered looking Shengshun's collar and kissed him hotly.

"You are a genius!"

The MI6 agent jumped to his feet after parting with the younger man, grabbed his files and shot out of the room, barely taking the time to shout a "See you later!" to the dark haired one.

*+*+*

Sighing slightly Hei let the bewildered expression he had been wearing drop and let himself fall back onto the futon.

Again he had deceived his lover and while had done it with good intentions it didn't help the guilty feeling in his chest that hadn't vanished since their talk.

After his mission to get rid of an agent that had seen his face on a previous mission, he had been alarmed when there had been a murder near the place he had killed that man at.

It had also unsettled him that the victim had looked quite a bit like him and he had wondered if the murderer had seen his face then.

The agent that had tried to blackmail him had only met with the assassin under the condition that he left his mask off for him to see his face and Hei had obeyed unhappily.

He had thought that there hadn't been anyone nearby and Yin too had said that there was nobody near the scene and he trusted her.

Of course, there could have been someone further away who could have witnessed it, but why would the one witnessing it start to kill people?

It didn't make any sense, but when he had talked to his team-mates about it (despite being annoying they were good in gathering information and sometimes even gave reasonable advice) they had found out that the victim had left a club that was only a street away from the place of his mission just after he had killed the agent.

Because of that and his uneasiness he had gotten a job there to keep an eye on things and to gather information.

He hadn't thought that there would be a murder the next day too and that the victim would be a regular at the club but because it was that way, he had kept the job and kept an eye on things. Despite that, other people had been killed and he hated that he had been unable to put a hold on it.

The death of the children had hit him especially hard – they were innocents and when he had met the brother of the second victim drinking himself into a stupor at the club he had felt horrible.

He had been feeling like that a lot lately and he hated that he couldn't block out or get rid of these emotions.

Ever since he had started to feel guilty when he had that talk with November two weeks earlier he had been feeling that way more and more often.

It was almost like a dam had broken and nothing could stop the flood that had been contained for such a long time.

After the last victim he had realised that he couldn't find the murderer on his own, so he had wondered how he was going to tell the police what he knew.

_Well, that's taken care of._

Despite himself the assassin couldn't help smiling a little. It had been their first fight and while he knew that there would still be many to come (especially when he was going to offer his help to the police) he would remember that the first one had been because of concern and not anger.

It wouldn't be difficult to remember – there weren't a lot of people that got angry because they were worried about him.

In fact, in the last ten years, the only one who had done that was Amber, some time after they had met.

He had been injured, but had insisted on holding Pai until she woke up from her remuneration and the blonde woman had yelled at him for being that unreasonable. A few sharp and uncaring words had stopped her from ever repeating that again though, so November's reaction had been refreshing and saddening at the same time.

Huang would be happy were Hei to be killed on a mission, Mao wouldn't care and while she wasn't emotionless, the assassin knew that Yin's reaction would be minimal.

He still needed to contact them and tell them that he had managed to give the information to the police and that they could put the plan in action that night.

He was going to the club as a normal clubber and since he fit the description of the victims perfectly he was probably going to be targeted. He had been planning this for some time so he had spread the word around the club that the killer was picking his targets from 'The Ravenous' and he had noticed with satisfaction that less and less dark haired dark eyed people with similar facial structure had been coming to it.

Since Hei was probably the one the murderer really wanted to kill there was a large chance of the plan succeeding.

He was going to get himself caught and then kill him in 'self-defence'.

"_So you're going to self-defence him to death? How fitting. I've got to watch that."_

Mao had been more than amused by the plan the dark haired man had concocted and had said that he was going to watch even if it was the last thing he was going to do.

When he had heard that, Hei had considered making Mao's wish come true, but he knew that he wouldn't be able to get away with 'self-defence-ing' his team-mate 'to death' as the cat had so eloquently put it.

Shaking his head a little the assassin pulled his blanket over his shoulders. If he wanted to be successful that night, he was going to need another few hours of sleep.

His team-mates were ready on call and were only waiting for it – the only difficulty was going to November.

*+*+*

"I refuse."

Angrily November glared at his lover who glared right back.

"They didn't ask you, they asked me! In fact, I was the one who offered so you have no right to refuse!"

The MI6 agent gritted his teeth and tried to keep himself from outright yelling.

"I ask you again. Do you want to die? Why on earth would you put yourself in that kind of danger you idiot! There no reason for you to do something a policeman could do too!"

"No reason? No reason! I don't want to read the paper tomorrow and find out that another six year old kid died because I 'wasn't allowed' to help! Damn it Jack! It's not like I'm going in there alone! April is coming with me and the rest of the police are waiting outside the club!"

Before November could reply, April interrupted them.

"Shengshun, I know you want to help, but this really is something that someone else can do. You don't need to put yourself into danger like that."

Taking a deep breath, the Chinese man answered to that with a forced calm that was contradicted by his balled fists.

"That would be strange don't you think? The ones picked from the club were all regulars and those that were visiting for the first time were usually safe. On the other hand it isn't suspicious for a bartender to go to the club he works at with a friend. Besides that, I fit the profile of the victim completely. Someone else might not. I want to help."

The pleading look on his face as he asked her to understand broke her resistance to his idea. She and November knew that Shengshun was their best bet at getting the killer, but they didn't want to admit it.

"Also Misaki-san already got the heads up from her superiors for this so this argument is completely pointless. I'm doing this whether you want me to or not and there is nothing you can say that will convince me to do otherwise."

Both MI6 agents stared at him for a moment, November frustrated and April amused.

"You're actually pretty shrewd, aren't you?"

A reluctant smile crossed the dark haired man's lips.

"You only notice that now?"

The Brit growled under his breath and turned on his heel, leaving the room before he said something he regretted.

The two people left only shared a look and sighed.

"He cares a lot or he wouldn't get that upset."

"I know. I just wish that he'd understand that I can't just stand around when I could do something about it."

April chuckled a little.

"He does understand. That's part of the reason he's that frustrated. He also knows that he can't stop you and he never dealt well with feeling helpless."

Shengshun smiled sadly and the appreciation was clear in his voice.

"I know."

*+*+*

Wearing the pants and sleeveless shirt he usually wore on missions (they were acceptable as club-wear and he could move easily in them) Hei waited for April in front of the club.

He had already greeted the bouncer and was contemplating whether or not he should take his coat out of his pants-pocket no matter how strange that might seem to other bystanders.

It was getting chilly and had he known that April would be that late, he would have worn a long-sleeved shirt or a jacket.

The sleeveless shirt made him seem harmless however and that was exactly what he wanted.

He had stashed various weapons on his body in a fashion that made them seem invisible – the watch he wore on his left wrist contained the wire he usually used in missions, there were blades placed in his shoes and belt and there was a small weight in one of his pockets that he could clip to the wire. It would let him throw it easier and more accurately than with only the small weight that was already placed on its end.

Rubbing his arms to keep himself at least a little warm, he sighed relieved when he caught sight of the dark skinned woman he was waiting for.

"There you are. I was wondering if you were coming at all."

April grinned sheepishly while they walked past the bounder and into the club.

"Sorry. Jack wouldn't let me go without giving me instructions first and you know how he can be."

With an annoyed expression she hit the necklace she wore with her fingernail and Hei assumed that a microphone and a tracking device had been installed in it.

The woman had noticed the look he had given the necklace and, smirking, she pulled a replica of hers out of her purse.

A simple dark blue marble on a black string and the assassin was glad that at least it was relatively inconspicuous as he slipped it over his head without protesting.

He would have to find an opportunity to conveniently 'lose' the damn thing when the situation called for it.

He wanted to have a word with that killer (in other words, he wanted to interrogate him) and he couldn't do that if the police were listening in.

The two of them walked to the bar and Hei put on his usual mask of friendly, harmless Li Shengshun as he chatted with his co-workers and introduced April as a friend of his (to those that didn't remember the woman that could out-drink all the other people in the club and still drive home safely).

While he did that he let his gaze wander around the room, taking in people he knew and people he hadn't seen before when his gaze stopped at a man leaning against a wall.

He was sipping a drink and staring almost bored at the dance-floor. The man looked a little out of place since he wasn't as dressed up as the other customers, but since the club was frequented by people of all ages he didn't stand out much.

Still, there was something about him that struck Hei as familiar – the way he tilted his head, the slight smile on his face and when the man raised his head to stare back at him, the assassin knew who it was.

That knowledge shot through him like a punch would and the syndicate member almost dropped his drink as he stared at the one person he had thought he would never see again.

The man on the other end of the club smirked at him and motioned him to follow and, not even looking at her, Hei excused himself for a moment and wove through the people on the dance-floor, easily following the other, older man to the back-door of the club.

While walking he took off the necklace and dropped it on the floor, crushing it beneath his foot.

One of his hands moved to his back-pocket and pulled his coat out of it and he slipped it on as soon as he left the club through the back-door.

He ignored the shaking of his hands as he looked at the older man who had stopped in the alley behind the building they had exited and had finally turned around to face him.

"It's nice to see you again after such a long time. I was wondering when you would finally crawl out of the hole you had hidden yourself in and face me like a normal human would have done you coward."

These words dispelled the anxiousness Hei had felt ever since he had realised just who he was confronting and fury raised its head.

"Me? A coward? I'm not the one who killed a defenceless six-year old child that had no chance of protecting itself!"

A derisive snort was all the answer he got.

"I'm sure you've killed more children than I've seen in a lifetime in the few years we haven't seen each other. Don't be that melodramatic."

The assassin stopped himself from lunging at the older man and took a deep breath. He was a professional killer – he wasn't going to start a petty fight with someone who murdered defenceless children in their sleep.

"Other than the fact that the children I killed were all dangerous Contractors that worked for enemy-organisations I don't have anything to say to you. Now why don't you tell me what you want?"

The man laughed and he sounded broken, cracked – like a piece of glass that had been treated unkindly – he didn't sound anything like the man Hei remembered talking with.

"I want you to suffer. You are a betrayer of humankind. You became a monster, a demon that people call Contractors. You are the same as all the other liars and traitors that are parasites feeding on humankind.

What I want, little brother, is your death."

* * *

I hope the next chapter will be back to its usual pace but I hope that you enjoyed this one too. As always, thanks for reading!

By the way, should I change the rating? I'm not really sure about it...

Yours,

TTF


	17. Chapter 16

A/N: This chapter is shorter than usual, but I updated earlier too so I guess it's okay. (And there was a god place to stop...)

This chapter I'm going to start replying to anonymous reviews, which I probably should have done ages ago and I feel guilty that I haven't but I loved every single one of them.

kingsofnothing: I'm glad you liked it and for those that were waiting for the time that November finally finds out, this chapter is the right one. Thanks for advising me on the rating thing, it helped a lot!^^ And I'll do my best with the tests.

androgene: I hope that this chapter won't disappoint and will make you grin just as much. (:

tigoxgirl: I know it was mean, but not as mean as this one. -grin-

iwanMOAR: I'm happy I can still surprise people.

pixy: I still have a lot to learn, but I'm happy you think so!^^ This chapter should answer some of your questions and the next one should answer the rest.

xtainted_blackx: I'm always happy to hear that I can get this pairing more followers. They need more love.^^ I know doujinshi and I'm really looking forward to the release! After I watched the anime and read the manga I was looking around for some, but there were none released so this makes me really happy!

Should I answer the reviews at the beginning or at the end of the chapter? And should I write answers to the ones in previous chapters?

Well, I hope you'll enjoy this chapter and if you find mistakes I'll do my best to fix them.

* * *

Translation:

Wên - cut across (throat)

I got this translation from an online dictionary, so I hope it doesn't sound too odd.

* * *

Hei froze for a moment as he tried to think of a reply that would give him some time to think about things.

He didn't want to kill his brother even though that would probably be the easiest solution. When he had met Mei and her daughter he had found that, while he still hated her and never wanted to see her again, he didn't feel the desire to end her life.

It was strange how years, experience and loss could dull hate and pain until it was only a memory.

A clear and unpleasant memory that one wanted to bury, but after losing Pai, after meeting Huang, Mao, Yin, April, July and, most importantly, November, it didn't burn as painfully as it once had.

"You saw me that night when I was meeting with that agent, didn't you? How did you know it was me?"

It was a random question and only of passing interest to the assassin that tried to think of a way to get rid of his brother without killing him.

Shé answered calmly and almost amused and for a moment Hei felt like he was back at the house he and his siblings had lived in and was talking to his brother in their training room.

"Did you really think I could ever forget my beloved little brother's face? I knew it was you the moment I saw you the night after I killed the first man, but I had already started the pattern and stopping it after killing you would have been suspicious. They would have investigated people with a connection to you and I'm sure that your boy-toy knows all about our past."

The assassin was angry when he heard that – just because the older man had wanted to keep himself safe he had killed innocent people without a second thought even though his real target had long since appeared before him.

"The thing is, I started this pattern to draw you out and catch you, but I never thought that I would find you that easily. It was a wasted effort really, though it was a great stress-reliever to hear your substitutes scream like that.

The boy, you know, the older one, he sounded exactly like you did when you were that age and it sent chills down my back when I heard his sweet voice."

Hei made to lunge at his brother, rage tainting his senses and only a pair of arms that wrapped around his torso held him back and froze him in his tracks.

"I do not believe that we have had the pleasure of meeting. My name is Jack Simon and you are currently threatening and provoking my lover. I'd appreciate it were you to stop doing that."

The assassin's breathing was fast and swallow.

_How much did he hear? Since when has he been standing behind me?_

One of November's thumbs started to move, caressing the younger man's side as the blonde obviously tried to calm him down.

"Since I am his older brother I have the right to do as I like more so than you think you do, but for the sake of a calm conversation I believe that you are right. I wouldn't want to be attacked by a demon after all."

There was something vicious in Shé's voice as it practically dripped with false pleasantry and Hei was immediately wary.

The man he had called his brother had never used that tone with him and since it didn't really sound very sane, he couldn't help but think that it was one that the older man had acquired more recently, but it definitely didn't sound good.

November slowly released him as soon as he had regained his composure and stepped around him to shield him from his brother.

"How nice of you to think so. Now, I introduced myself – isn't it only polite for you to do the same?"

The sincerity MI6 agent's voice was sickening especially because it sounded too honest and real to be fake when all of those present knew it was a lie.

"I haven't introduced myself yet? How ill-mannered of me. My name is Wên Shé. I'm Míng Yè's older brother. It's nice to meet you."

Were he more naïve and less knowledgeable about what kind of person his brother (a serial-killer with a grudge) and his lover (a Contractor without conscience) were, he would have thought that they were having a pleasant conversation.

As it was, he knew better than that and could see that it was only their self-control that kept them from attacking each other and ripping out each others throat.

Inwardly he couldn't help but think that he'd prefer November to win that fight.

"The pleasure is all mine, but I'm afraid that Shengshun will have to leave now."

Hei glared at the blonde's back and from the way the older man tensed he knew that the MI6 agent could feel it. The Chinese man opened his mouth to protest when he caught sight of a familiar black cat darting along the wall of the alley silenced him.

It was obvious that his silence was unexpected and both of the older men turned their gaze to him.

The dark haired man scowled at them, shooting his lover a look that warned him to be careful before he turned around and vanished in the darkness of the street crossing the alley.

After he was sure he was a sufficient distance away he called out to Mao, who came shortly after, dragging a bag with him.

It looked almost comical and despite the grim situation (and the shock he still hadn't truly recovered from) he couldn't resist commenting on it.

"Maybe you should have changed your body for a dog's. It would have been easier on you."

The man turned cat bristled, his fur standing up slightly. At the beginning Mao hadn't had a preference when it came to animals, but after spending such a long time as a cat (and after being hunted by dogs many times) the syndicate member had developed quite a dislike for dogs, preferring cats and birds to a canine.

"Right. The next time you need someone to lug around the things you kill people with you better not look at me."

With an indignant sniff and a theatrically thrown back head, the cat turned around and vanished in the darkness.

Smirking slightly Hei opened the bag and took out the things he would need – his mask, his vest, his belt and his thigh-holster, all filled with various lethal weapons (and weapons that were only lethal when he used them).

Taking a deep breath he dressed in all of these things, and hid the bag behind a dumpster that was conveniently placed nearby.

He ignored the way his hands were shaking at the thought of fighting November and slowly walked towards the alley he had left.

It was time to join the fight that had started while he had been gone.

*+*+*

It had taken him some time, but Mao had managed to climb up to the low roof and was now looking down at the fight that was taking place in the alley.

The things that Hei always somehow got caught up in never ceased to amuse him and that, together with the apparent lack of concern that the police apparently had for their Contractor-colleague made for a better evening-program than the soap operas and movies that ran on TV.

The cat whistled (or did something that sounded like a whistle) lowly when he saw how November 11 elegantly avoided a bullet that was shot form a gun that was large, shiny and probably not registered. Not that Mao cared about registering.

Their team got all their weaponry from the syndicate and they only had to be careful not to get caught by police or citizens.

Mao was just curious where on earth a relatively normal human could get a gun that was new and obviously working very well.

_Well, I guess since Hei's brother can be considered as a certifiable psycho that question is _ _not really something to be concerned about._

_I bet that some kind of mafia-guy_ _ noticed this guy's 'I'm a crazy killer'-vibes and gave it to him for fun._

The syndicate member amused himself with the picture of a black clad Yakuza handing Hei's brother the gun wrapped in sparkling pink gift-wrap when he was distracted by the figure sneaking up on the two combatants.

Immediately Mao sat up a little straighter and leaned even more over the railing to see more clearly.

_This is promising to be good._

Neither the MI6 agent nor the serial-killer noticed Hei's slow approach until he fluidly stepped between them, pushed November out of the way and wrapped the other Chinese man in wire, continuing to move to avoid his lover, who had gotten back on his feet.

The blonde slid one of his hands into his pants-pocket and suddenly storm-like clouds formed above them.

Mao grimaced. He hated it when he got wet – his fur always smelled funny when that happened and it started to itch uncomfortably.

When he had told Hei about that, the assassin had refused to let the man turned cat into his apartment until he had gotten a flea-bath, a thing that the syndicate member had never forgotten and still hadn't found out how to pay back.

Hei had moved behind his brother and obviously made to knock him unconscious before he said something that could reveal his identity and to wrap everything up before April could let rain fall, but he didn't have any luck.

Shé had managed to cut himself free with some kind of knife (that he had probably gotten from the same Yakuza, because having a knife that cut through Hei's specially made wire was extraordinary) and now shot towards the dark-haired man with surprising speed and attacked him with the blade.

He was no real match for someone whose job was to kill people and who had been trained just for that purpose, but a normal human probably wouldn't stand a chance against him.

Just at that moment, a large amount of water crashed down on them and flooded the alley.

November, who had been holding himself back, now started to glow in a blue light and, seeing what was going to happen, Hei used his grappling-hook and managed to get off the floor just as it froze to ice.

Shé hadn't been as lucky and was obviously infuriated, cursing angrily and violently and Mao smirked slightly while committing some of these rather inventive curses to memory.

Despite his obvious anger he still managed to turn his upper body towards November, shooting at him and managing to graze the Brit's shoulder.

Curiously the syndicate member watched as his team-mate jerked a little, obviously wanting to go to the older man to make sure he was alright but holding himself back.

_Good grief, Hei's always such a self-hating martyr – if he wants to do something he should just do it. As long as the rest of us don't have to suffer from it._

Using the assassin's distraction, Shé managed to slip out of his shoes and moved closer to the injured MI6 agent, obviously deeming him the less dangerous of the two Contractors.

The blonde cursed under his breath and Mao had to hold back a laugh when he noticed that, despite the Brit's fury and bad mood, the cat hadn't been the only one who had memorized some of the curses that the Chinese man had used.

"Don't do anything stupid or blondie here has one hole more in his body than you'd probably prefer."

November snorted derisively.

"We work for enemy organisations. You don't honestly think that that threat is going to work, do you?"

The killer paused for a moment before a slow and disturbing smile crept onto his face.

"Oh, I see how it is. How interesting. You just gave me something else that I can torment my little brother with. Thank you."

Then he chuckled happily and turned back to Hei, who had listened quietly and obviously waited for the right moment to strike without harming his lover, pulling out another gun with his free hand and shooting the blonde in the injured shoulder while holding the younger man's gaze.

Hei had tensed when his brother had pulled the trigger, but hadn't reacted otherwise to the shot.

The gun hadn't pointed at a lethal area and a bullet wouldn't have done that much damage.

Mao arched an eyebrow when, instead of a bullet, a dart hit the MI6 agent and made him collapse on his side, leaving the Black Reaper free to use the time Shé needed to grab the falling body and hit his brother with his knife, sending electricity through the wire attached to it.

Before it managed to reach the older man, the door leading from the club to the alley opened violently and two obviously drunk men stumbled out of the building.

Shé ripped the knife out of his side and grabbed one of the men that had just arrived, holding him from behind and holding him at gun-point.

He was laughing and ignoring the way the male struggled against him, hitting him with the butt of the gun to quiet him down.

"Do you see this? Luck is probably on my side today. I've found another victim and you won't be able to stop me. Or do you want to take his place?"

It was getting more and more interesting and Mao leaned even more forward to see better, since Shé was standing right beneath his viewing-place.

Unfortunately he misjudged how much roof was still available and lost his balance.

_Crap,_ was the only thing he thought when he landed on the serial-murderer's head.

*+*+*

Hei smiled beneath his mask when he watched the ever-clumsy Mao fall on his brother's head.

_His timing couldn't have been better._

Using his team-mate's distraction, he quickly closed in on his homicidal, crazed and vengeful brother and ripped his hostage out of his arms, using the momentum to throw the drunk into his friend.

_Those two are out of the way – now back to the main problem._

Shé had been trying to rip the black cat off his head, but Mao was using his claws and tenacity to stay where he was, until Hei called his name.

Immediately he let go of the man, jumped off his head and vanished in the darkness of the street.

Before the cat's figure had completely disappeared, the assassin had already kicked the gun out of his brother's hands and closed in to knock the older man out, when a sharp pain in his side distracted him.

Stunned he stumbled back and looked down to see a dart sticking out of his side, just below his ribs.

Slowly he raised his head again, but it was getting difficult to focus his eyes and the alley started to spin and grow darker. He barely noticed his brother, holding a gun in his hand, kneeling down beside November and opened his mouth to tell Shé to stay away, but before he could do more than groan incoherently, everything went black.

*+*+*

April was worried. No, that wasn't really the right description. She was scared and worried and very, very angry.

She was worried because she hadn't heard of November or Shengshun since the signal her team-mate had given her had stopped. November had told her that she should use her powers on the alleys behind the club and that's what she had done.

In front of the building the police were watching who entered and left the club and no self-respecting serial-killer would use that way out when it was obviously guarded.

Breathing shakily and downing another beer for her remuneration, she thought that it was just her luck that on the first night that they were here the killer came and caused trouble.

It couldn't have been the next or the on after that, no, it had to be the night where November was still emotional because of the whole thing and would order the police to leave the back-alleys of the club alone because he thought he could guard them by himself.

_Men are impulsive idiots. Especially blonde Contractors that are madly, irrationally in love with other dark haired males, who are, by the way, also idiots._

That was the reason she was angry.

Because some of the people who had been called to watch the streets and alleys near the club hadn't been informed about Contractors, November had called them off and had started to watch the back-door by himself, claiming that he was enough to deal with whoever that murderer was.

Because he had obviously been more than angry and close to homicidal, nobody had dared to oppose that decision and had left that part to the Brit.

"The next time I see him, I'm going to strangle that man."

Whether she meant November, the killer or Shengshun wasn't clear and she didn't even know herself, but she was equally angry with all of them.

The killer for being a sadistic bastard that obviously got off on killing people that looked like her friend, November because he was acting irrational, gave stupid orders and had probably endangered both himself and Shengshun, and Shengshun because he had just wandered off without telling her why and looking out of it.

Having had enough of this, she paid for her drinks and pushed through the crowd towards the door at the back of the club.

When she came to the door, she could already hear the hysterical voices of two men, who were talking about a fight between a Chinese man and a masked man.

Because they were obviously drunk, nobody paid much attention to their ramblings, but April could feel a chill run down her spine when she realised that the men they were obviously talking about were probably Shengshun and the murderer.

She felt uneasy when she thought about that though and while November had told her that his lover could take care of himself, she wondered what her team-mate was doing during the fight he should have prevented.

Getting closer to the two men, she grabbed one of them by the collar and demanded more information.

"What did the Chinese man look like? What happened after the fight? Was a blonde man around? Well? Tell me or I will cause you so much pain that you great-great-grandchildren will still feel it!"

She knew that she should be more polite, but she had the feeling that every second counted now and she didn't like that.

The man stammered when he heard that, but another deadly glare directed at him made him talk as if the story couldn't fall out of his mouth fast enough.

"The man was probably in his thirties and he was really crazy. He had a gun and was shooting at the masked man and there was a blonde man lying on the floor and he didn't move. That guy then hit the masked man with something or other and he collapsed too. He then ordered us to drag them to a car and-"

He was cut off by another glare and a calm, cool question.

"And you obeyed him? You helped a man kidnap two people. Tell me your names and come with me – I'll take you to the police."

Both men blanched and were obviously considering whether they should flee or not, but right at that moment, two bouncers came to the scene and asked what was going on.

There was a vicious smirk on April's face and while she knew that the two drunks were probably threatened into it, she couldn't help but feel angry that they had kidnapped one of her team-mates.

It relieved her that it hadn't been Shengshun who had been there, but she wondered who the masked man was. The only one who came to her mind was BK-201 but she didn't know what the assassin could have to do with all of this.

It was irrational to frighten them, but she didn't care. She needed them to come with her to get more information.

"These two men helped a man that is a suspect for the recent serial-killings abduct two people and I would like your help in escorting them outside."

While saying that she took her ID out of her purse, showing the bouncers that she was working with the police and making sure that they could see the gun she had in there as well.

The two men blanched even more and even the bouncers looked uneasy, but they obeyed her and grabbed the two men, helping her to drag them outside.

As soon as they were out of the club and across the street, she waved at one of the cars parked there. It was a dark grey van usually used for transporting furniture. This one carried another kind of cargo and as soon as she was in sight, the back-door opened and Misaki climbed outside.

"What's going on? We lost contact with both Li-kun and November 11 and I just got a call that BK-201's, as well as November's star reacted."

April nodded grimly, her assumption proven correct.

"From what I heard November and BK-201 were kidnapped and I haven't heard from Shengshun. He's simply gone missing, which doesn't bode well considering he was bait for the killer."

The Japanese woman gritted her teeth and then stared at the bouncers holding on to the drunks.

"What are they doing here?"

"The two wimps helped the killer move BK-201 and November. I don't have the details, but I'm sure you can get them out of these guys. They weren't cooperating so I asked the bouncers to help me out. Now I'm going to ask July to track them down."

The dark-skinned woman turned on her heel and climbed into the truck, looking around the concerned faces for the only one that would still be impassive.

She knew that the Doll had emotions, but she also knew that it was practically impossible for July to show them on his face, which was both sad and a relieving constant.

_At least one person in the team is always composed, even if it is a small boy._

Her eyes locked with the sky-blue ones of the Doll and she nodded at him to start searching.

There hadn't been any shiny surfaces for him to track them in the alleys behind the club and so he hadn't been able to keep an eye on them, but now that had hopefully changed.

She walked closer to the boy and sat down beside him, watching as he stared into the small mirror in front of him.

After some time he shook his head.

"I can't find them."

His voice was as monotone as usual, but there was a sudden spark of _something_ in his usually emotionless eyes and April wrapped an arm around the child.

It was uncharacteristic of a Contractor to comfort someone, much less a Doll that needed comforting, but she didn't care.

She cared only about November and Shengshun and hoped that they would be alright.

_I am so going to beat November up when I see him again. He's such a bastard for making July worry._

Ignoring her own anxiousness she cursed soundlessly.

*+*+*

When Hei regained consciousness he wondered who had hit him over the head with a baseball bat, until he managed to recognise the pain as one that usually appeared when having hangovers after drinking alcohol or being drugged with something.

Because it felt worse than the usual hangover, he knew he had been hit with something that had knocked him out and he thought it was pathetic that he could probably even say which drug it had been solely because of the kind and strength of the pain in his head and the slowness in his limbs.

He didn't really want to know what his mentally unstable brother had managed to get his hands on though, and so he didn't even try to identify it.

Instead he kept his breathing-pattern even, his body relaxed and his eyes closed and tried to find out what was going on around him with the rest of his senses.

He could hear someone breathing and from the carefully controlled way it sounded, it was probably November.

_Now I can even identify him just by hearing him breath._

Hei felt the urge to laugh hysterically, but fought it down and concentrated again.

He was lying on his side, his hands were tied together and he could feel something heavy around his left ankle – something that felt suspiciously like a shackle.

_Where the hell does he get all this stuff from? First the gun, then the drug, now _ _a shackle – did he get it at 'Psychos 'R Us'?_

Forcing himself not to tense, he noticed that, from the way his own and November's breathing sounded, that he was in a relatively small room and the Brit was close to him.

The next thing he noticed was that his mask was gone.

Immediately his eyes snapped open and he shot up into a sitting position.

His eyes met his lover's and November smiled coolly.

"Fancy meeting you here Mr. 201-BK. Did you sleep well?"

_Crap._

Hei hated it when things like this happened.

* * *

And this is another cliffhanger you'll probably hate me for, but it was a good place to stop.^^

The next chapter will come soon though, so no worries about waiting a long time. I hope you liked it!

Yours,

TTF


	18. Chapter 17

A/N: Bet you didn't expect another update this early. (:

I wasn't sure yesterday whether or not I'd be able to update today but since it's my birthday I thought two chapters in a row would be a treat. (In the beginning I wanted to continue writing on this one until it was as long as most others but then I decided to update today)

Here are the replies to the anonymous reviews:

bossy_foodshield: Yeah, he did.^^

iwanMOAR: Sorry about that, but at least is an early update.

tigoxgirl: I hope this is early enough.^^

moose: I did but I hope this makes up for it.^^

* * *

As soon as he had sat up, the room started to spin nauseatingly and Hei had to lie down again to keep himself from throwing up.

Ignoring the assassin's obvious discomfort November continued.

"I don't know why I was that surprised when your brother pulled off your mask. It was obvious now that I think about it. I always knew that you were a dangerous man and I knew I should have asked you about the way you effortlessly killed all these Yakuza when we helped Tsukasa.

You told me that your sister was a Contractor and in the hospital you called for Pai, Carmine and Amber.

I should have connected the human brother and his Contractor sister with you and your sister when I read February's diary – Red for Carmine, White for Pai and Black for Hei."

The assassin flinched when he heard the bitterness in November's voice and clenched his fists, wishing his nausea would go away so he could explain himself.

_And what would you explain? That he is completely right? That you lied to him from the second the two of you met? That you were too chicken to tell him about it when he came clean about himself?_

"Your age and Black's are the same, you fought like BK-201 that night, you weren't surprised when I told you about Contractors and I knew that Hei, Black and BK-201 are the same person.

I didn't even think to question you why you knew where Kenji, Tsukasa and Hitotsubashi were. I just accepted that you were there without a second thought.

July couldn't have told you about it without revealing why he knew and to see observation spectres you have to be a Contractor.

You lied to me all along."

Hei could detect a sliver of hurt in November's angry words and he gritted his teeth and started to talk.

"I wanted to tell you."

He tilted his head to look at the blonde, but that position made his head hurt and stomach rebel, so he closed his eyes again.

"Oh, you did? Well, that changes everything. What was I thinking about, being angry with you about such a trivial thing?"

The sarcasm in the Brit's words was cutting.

"And I suppose that your syndicate gave you a salary-raise for drawing in an enemy-agent. How much did you get? It had to be quite an amount for you to agree to this scheme."

The assassin turned and glared at him, this time ignoring the nausea in favour of replying angrily.

"You really think that I was acting? That I'd stoop so low as to play you like that?"

The fury in his voice seemed to cut through the pain of the apparent betrayal that the Mi6 agent felt and a pair of kingfisher blue eyes stared at him startled.

"I told you the truth when I told you about my sister-in-law and my niece and I did want to tell you about it, but we were interrupted before I could in case you don't remember."

Hei forced himself to his feet and staggered closer to November, who was now staring wide-eyed at his furious cell-partner.

The drugs had lowered the assassin's barriers and he couldn't hold back his emotions thoughts.

"I stopped talking because I was scared in case you didn't notice you idiot! I didn't ask you to like me, in the beginning I didn't even want you to like me, in the beginning I wanted to tie you to the nearest bomb and blow you to bits!

How is it my fault that you managed to get under my skin and that you managed to make me fall in love with you, you bastard?

I never wanted to be a Contractor, I never wanted to kill people for a living and I certainly never wanted to work for a criminal syndicate!

I only wanted my sister to be safe! I didn't wake up one morning and decided to ask the syndicate for a job! I was pushed into it! I-"

The room was spinning again and Hei knew that his sentences were making less and less sense and then decided to let his legs give out underneath him, letting his body collapse.

_I hate this_ _,_ was his last more or less coherent thought as darkness claimed him again.

*+*+*

Breathlessly November stared at the man lying in front of him.

His heart was racing and he didn't know whether he still felt angry or not.

When Shé had removed the Reaper's mask, the Brit had been stunned – then he had felt betrayed as he slowly realised what was going on.

He had felt stupid then, for letting his guard down with a man that was obviously dangerous and a liar and for not noticing the suspicious actions Shengshun – BK-201 he reminded himself – had taken.

When he had noticed that the younger man was awake, he had waited for him to acknowledge him and when the dark haired one had reacted, he had let his frustration and hurt out without mercy.

November had never expected such an angry, passionate and equally hurt reply and had been unable to do anything but stare in astonishment as usually stoic blue eyes filled with unimaginable anguish and grief and the normally calm face lost its composure.

He had looked like he was going to cry.

What Shengshun had said, yelled actually – had been as unexpected as the familiar face beneath the ceramic mask.

It had been disjointed and the younger Contractor had obviously been out of it when defending himself, but the things he said struck a chord in the blonde that he hadn't even known existed.

What Hei had said was true. He had been the one chasing after the dark haired man and even he knew that it was impossible to fake every emotion that happened.

Staring at the slack face of the assassin November remembered how he had managed to make him lose his temper the first time, how the fury in the beautiful midnight sky coloured eyes he had grown to love had made him speechless after being cold for such a long time.

He remembered being angry with the younger man because he had been lied to about the mugger that had hurt Shengshun and the story he had been told about the Chinese man's past, the way his voice had been completely emotionless, but his hand had gripped the blonde's tightly.

The anguish in Black's voice as he screamed the names of the people he had known, who had left him and who had betrayed him while November pinned him to the hospital bed, trying to prevent him from hurting himself.

The younger man looking upset when the Brit told him about the names he had screamed and the way the slim body had felt against his own.

The fear in beautiful eyes when November had been held at gunpoint by a Yakuza and the exhilaration that the MI6 agent felt when they fought side by side, back to back.

The fear and relief he felt when Kenji protected the assassin with his body and the regret and pain when he noticed how much it had hurt his lover to see someone die for his sake.

A hot mouth covered his own, tasting of alcohol and long, slender fingers gripping his shoulders and back.

The taste of sweat, smoke and _Shengshunloverfriendelectricity_ on his tongue as he sucked on the younger man's neck.

Dark blue eyes darkening even more, glazed with alcohol and pleasure and grief, staring into his own.

A mouth curving into a lazy, affectionate smile and a slender hand pulling him close for a good morning kiss.

The fear and guilt and self-loathing in Hei's eyes after talking about Contractors and Dolls and monsters wearing human skin, that lie and cheat and betray when you trust them.

November gritted his teeth, trying to push away the flood of memories but finding himself unable to do so.

Still staring at the younger man the Brit felt helplessness rise up inside himself.

_I'm completely, utterly and irrevocably, in love with him. He has me wrapped around his little finger and he doesn't even know it._

_I'm doomed should he ever find out._

The despair in Black's eyes had also been disconcerting.

_It's probably the first time that he says any of these things aloud. A normal human teenager isn't suited for a battlefield and from what he told me, he and his sister were probably picked up soon after they were chased away by their siblings._

_That means that he was thirteen or fourteen when he first started to kill._

The blonde also remembered the day he had – uselessly as he now knew – explained about Contractors and Dolls and thought about the stricken look that had been on the Chinese man's face when November's cell-phone had rang.

While thinking about that, the MI6 agent was suddenly struck by another thing that Shengshun had said.

'_-that you managed to make me fall in love with you, you bastard!'_

He froze when he remembered that but then put his head in his hands, laughing quietly when he felt the warmth in his chest that that sentence caused.

"At least now I know what he thinks of me."

Smirking slightly he shook his head, crawled closer to his lover and pulled him into his lap, only now that the anger was gone feeling the throbbing pain of his shoulder wound.

_What a pair we make. We've been kidnapped by a madman who is probably planning our slow, painful and gruesome death and we are quarrelling about relationship-problems._

Despite the situation he couldn't help but grin. He knew that he and Hei would still have a lot to fight and talk about when the assassin woke up, but for now it was enough for the blonde to know that despite the lies and deceptions that lay between them, their relationship was something real.

*+*+*

Hei was comfortable.

Considering that he had been kidnapped by his homicidal brother, had had a fight with his lover, been hit with a dart that had knocked him out and been chained to the floor in a room that was supposed to be a cell, comfortable was something that was definitely out of place.

The warmth beneath him and the unique smell consisting of smoke, cologne, blood and November told him that maybe the Brit wasn't as upset with him as he had thought he was and so he cautiously opened his eyes and looked around.

When he noticed that the Chinese man was awake, a slight smirk found its way on the MI6 agent's face.

"How are you feeling? The drug should be out of your system by now."

Ignoring the question the assassin stared into the older man's eyes, confusion written over his face.

"You're not upset and you're not yelling. What's going on?"

Hei was glad that he could blame his question on left-over drugs and a headache since he was usually better at controlling what came out of his mouth.

November's smile vanished and his expression grew serious.

"I was angry, but I also thought about the things you said. I guess that your love confession was honest enough to make me think about what happened between us ever since we first met."

For a moment Hei was confused. He couldn't remember confessing anything, but after thinking back to his incoherent rambling before he fainted, he felt his face grow hot.

Despite the embarrassment he felt, the assassin allowed himself to relax a little now that November had obviously accepted his identity as BK-201.

"What should I call you now? I doubt that Shengshun is your real name. You can call me November 11 by the way."

The younger man smirked a little when he heard the badly concealed curiosity in the older one's voice and answered slowly.

"It's Hei. That's not my real name, but after using it for such a long time, it might as well be."

The Brit nodded, understanding what the Chinese man meant before moving on to more pressing matters.

"What are we going to do about Shé? He took away our weapons and locked us up. I was lucky he didn't think to take my emergency cigarettes and lighters. Are you alright with your remuneration?"

The blonde had obviously been too caught up in other matters to think about it before, but now that things had calmed down between them he was wondering about it.

Hei hesitated for a moment. This was one of the topics he didn't like to talk about, since he had no explanation or idea why he was different from others.

"I don't have one. I don't know why, but probably because I never made a Contract I've never had to pay remuneration."

The blonde's eyebrows rose in surprise but he didn't protest that such a thing should be impossible.

The Brit had often wondered about BK-201's nature, since the assassin reacted irrationally and emotionally, acting more like a human than a Contractor or Moratorium.

"If you didn't enter a Contract why do you have this power?"

Hei relaxed a little when he only heard curiosity in the other's voice, nothing negative like he had feared.

"I don't remember. I probably got them just before or after the Heaven's Gate disappeared and I don't remember a lot of that time."

"What do you mean?"

The assassin paused as he tried to explain properly.

"I know that my team had a mission just before the Gate vanished and while I know it was completed successfully, I can't remember actually completing it. After the Gate was gone I woke up in a hospital with no memories of getting there and I knew that I had this power, but I couldn't remember forging a Contract or doing anything that could have given me this power."

He sighed a little.

"That's really all I can tell you since I don't know much more about it. The only thing that's even stranger than this is that this ability is a replica of my sister's and the star that reacts when I use it was hers too."

November frowned when he heard that, a thought striking him, but he didn't want to say it out loud yet. Before he thoughtlessly said anything he wanted to research a little.

Just then Hei sat up, ignoring the throbbing in his temples and turned around to stare at the blonde.

"What about your shoulder? You were shot, right?"

The Chinese man stared at the shoulder that he had been using as a pillow and frowned when he noticed the rip in the jacket and the blood-stain around it.

"The bullet only grazed me and when we were fighting I didn't even feel it so it's alright. It stings but it doesn't really hurt, so don't worry about it."

Displeasure was clearly visible on the assassin's face, but there was nothing he could do about the wound and it had already stopped bleeding.

"You were talking about emergency cigarettes. What do you mean?"

November smirked a little.

"Ever since I was abducted by Evening Primrose I've been hiding cigarettes, lighters and matches in my clothes and shoes in case someone takes away my pack after I used my power."

Hei shook his head, reluctant admiration in his eyes.

"That's unexpectedly foresighted of you. I wasn't expecting that."

"I'm flattered that your opinion of me is that high. Well, at least I don't have a psychotic, homicidal brother who probably tortures puppies in his free time."

November's voice was dry and sarcastic, but there was no real malice in his voice as he obviously tried to lighten the mood.

"Well excuse me. It's impossible to choose your relatives so how is that a reply for a mentioned character-flaw?"

Mock glaring at the older man the dark haired one had to fight to keep his lips from twitching.

"Would you be so kind to elaborate the description of the flaw? It would make it easier for me to relate my answers to the topic and avoid saying things like 'This situation is your entire fault'."

Stunned Hei stared at November.

"How on earth is this my fault? Well, I guess he is in the city to look for me and I think he saw me kill someone with my powers when I wasn't wearing my mask and that probably drove him insane enough to kill and you did come to the scene to protect me, but…"

The assassin paused as he thought about what he had just said.

"Well, alright, I probably did influence him and forced the police into making me bait, but how was I supposed to know that he would managed to knock us both out and get away with it? You are supposed to be the best agent the MI6 has and I am one of the best assassins of the syndicate so it wasn't farfetched to think we could manage to subdue one measly, untrained man."

November chuckled when he heard that defensive reply but agreed with the younger man.

"True. April is never going to let me live this down when we see her again."

The 'when' in the sentence was comforting Hei thought and so they waited in silence until someone came to their room.

They didn't have to wait long.

The door of the room slammed open soon after they had quieted and Shé, who was standing in the doorway, frowned when he saw the position they were in – Hei in November's lap – disappointment clearly visible on his face.

"So you reconciled again. That's a pity – I was looking forward to seeing you fight."

The Chinese man sighed dramatically before he smiled again.

"Well, I guess that just means that both of you will be screaming when I torture one of you."

There was a crazed expression in his eyes when he said that and both Contractors stared in disgust when he started to laugh maniacally.

"Are you sure you're related? That Mei woman seemed more like your sibling than this guy."

The syndicate member smiled reluctantly, knowing that baiting his brother was a bad idea, but unable to hold his own mocking comment back.

"Technically we're half-brothers and I always thought that my father wasn't all there. I'm just glad that apparently I come after my grandfather on my mother's side."

Shé glared at the two of them before he calmed down and smiled almost gently.

"I heard you and you will pay for that comment, don't worry. That takes care of the question of who is my first punching-bag though. You will be happy to know that blondie here will get the first treatment."

He took out the dart-gun again and smiled in a way that made him seem almost sane.

"It's time for you to go to sleep again."

They were both shot before they could react and Hei saw the world turn black.

_Not again._

*+*+*

There was little that could frazzle April but unfortunately for her, the abduction of one of her team-mates belonged to the short list of things that could do so.

Running one of her hands through her short hair, she resisted the urge to grab one of the two men she had dragged out of the club to make them remember something more.

They had sobered up by now and she had to resist the urge to drink something.

She loved alcohol but she could control herself – sometimes.

Taking another deep breath, she left the interrogation-room before she did something the two clubbers would regret.

By the time they had started to search the alley, nothing that could have been a clue had remained and nobody had seen anything.

The dark-skinned woman was frustrated and she hated feeling helpless more than anything else.

In front of the interrogation-room, July was sitting on a chair and staring into a mirror he held in his hands, still trying to find his team-mate and friend.

"Have you found anything?"

April knew she shouldn't sound impatient, but she couldn't speak calmly while one and maybe two of her friends were in the hands of a murderous madman.

The small blonde shook his head and there was a spark of frustration in his eyes before it vanished and he got to his feet.

Startled the woman looked at her team-mate and followed him as he walked through the police-station and out of its doors.

"Where are we going?"

She would be damned before she let her remaining comrade walk through this city alone while it was dark.

July paused for a moment and looked at her before he continued to walk.

"To meet someone."

The amber eyed woman frowned at the vague answer, but she followed obediently. She hadn't been aware that the Doll knew anyone other than her and November and she was curious about whom she was going to meet.

_I have the feeling that this is going to be interesting._

*+*+*

Mao hated it when Hei's various escapades got him in trouble, which happened far too often for his liking.

In the time they had spent as team-mates, he had learned how to keep himself mostly out of the various dangerous, incredulous and sometimes plain stupid situations the assassin landed in, but sometimes, like now, it was inevitable and he damned his curiosity for getting him into trouble.

Especially because he had to tell Huang about what had happened.

The human had grown softer ever since they met – he still swore at them, called them names and it was obvious that he still hated Contractors, but he gave them a hand when they needed it and he had started to keep a few secrets from the higher ups in their organisation.

Such as Mao's unprofessional stalking of his team-mate, Yin's friendship with the annoying pink-haired girl that had started to get her involved in dangerous hobbies and Hei's relationship and friendship with the MI6 team.

The eldest in their team saw more than they gave him credit for and over the time he had found it impossible not to get attached at least a little to his team-mates but that didn't mean that he forgave mistakes easily.

Mao hated to be the bearer of bad news, but this time the news was especially bad.

"You are telling me that Hei and November 11 were kidnapped by Hei's older brother who has a few screws loose and knows about Contractors."

Huang's voice was calm but there was a storm brewing behind his composed façade.

The man turned cat flinched – while the older man wasn't as frightening as Hei could be, when he was in a bad mood even the assassin avoided him as much as possible.

"Yes. I have a description of the killer's face and car and I got a good look at the licence plate though, so looking for them shouldn't be that big of a problem."

The angry glare he got for trying to be optimistic made him flinch and Mao wished that Yin would say something, but the Doll had put her feet into a puddle of water (courtesy of the empty water-bottle standing near her) and was searching for Hei.

The Japanese man cursed violently and the Contractor wished that he were somewhere else.

"Isn't that interesting? I was wondering where you'd lead me July, but I had no idea it was to this place."

A familiar voice prevented the oncoming screaming fit and Mao was relieved for a second before he realised just who had spoken.

The dark skinned MI6 agent smirked and walked closer to their group while the Doll with her sat himself beside Yin and grabbed her hand to all of their surprise.

"How sweet! I didn't know you had a girlfriend!"

April was grinning maniacally and nobody present doubted that she would endlessly tease the young boy about it when things had calmed down.

Huang looked like he was going to have a heart-attack if nothing happened – his face was a purplish red and his breath was coming in short gasps.

The man turned cat could understand why the man was that upset. It didn't matter if someone found out Mao's form.

While he had gotten used to the body of a cat, he would have no problems changing bodies and a new collar that connected him with the syndicate's network would take care of his mind's safety.

Yin could be used anywhere and still be useful to the syndicate, but Huang had only been accepted in the syndicate because of his expertise and knowledge in gathering information and his connections to people in Japan.

Were someone to find out about him, their organisation wouldn't hesitate to dispose of him.

"Calm down before you give yourself an ulcer old man. I'm not here to arrest you or anything like that. I want to suggest a truce."

Mao and Huang stared at the woman with disbelief clearly written on their faces.

"You want to what?"

Baffled the cat had been unable to hold back the questing and a delighted April walked up to him and swept him up into her arms.

"You're really adorable! Can I keep you?"

Desperately the Contractor tried to get away from the enthusiastic woman that was trying to suffocate him with her assets and mewled pathetically.

He didn't have much luck, but after another minute of suffocating the animal in her arms, the MI6 agent let go and got serious.

"November and BK-201 were kidnapped. I want to find November and you want to find your team-mate so I'm suggesting we stop fighting and work together. You mentioned that you know details, but you don't have the man-power or resources to get BK-201 out of whatever trouble he got into. I'm a Contractor and while my abilities aren't exactly offensive, I can still pack a punch. What do you say?"

Huang had calmed down and was now mustering both her and July and the woman respected that the man didn't write the boy off as harmless just because he was a Doll or a child.

July wasn't planning anything, but she could admire someone who covered all his bases and was careful not to slip up.

"As long as you don't go around telling people about it your suggestion is probably the best solution. Now let's work on getting November 11 and Hei out of trouble."

April frowned when she heard that name.

_Where have I heard it before? It was in a bar I think, but who was telling me about it?_

Keeping that thought in mind, she got closer to the cat (she was damned curious what his power was and she wondered if it was possible for an animal to be a Contractor) and the man called Huang (who seemed a lot like a moody uncle).

It was time to plan.

*+*+*

Shé looked around the room to make sure he had everything he needed before he walked toward a chair to which he had tied his younger brother.

Gently he ran a finger down the side of 'Shengshun''s face, marvelling at the softness and the contrast of its paleness to his own, darker, skin.

Míng Yè's eyes were closed and he was still unconscious and the older man was looking forward to the look on the Contractor's face when he saw what he was going to do with the blonde man.

Shé smiled. He had two demons in his grasp and he would make sure that they would die as slowly and painfully as possible – they didn't deserve anything else.

Removing his hand, he turned around and took a look at the other man in the room. He had chained him to the ceiling, his wrists encased in shackles that were the only thing keeping him upright and his legs dangling an inch over the floor.

This Contractor was also unconscious and he would be the first to die.

From what he had seen Míng Yè seemed to care a little about this one's life and he wanted to make sure that his brother knew the taste of losing everything before he killed him.

On a table near the door leading to this room, there were several tools he had used for his killings and which he would use now to ensure that the monsters he had caught would meet an end that would fit them.

The low groan as one of the demons came to ripped him out of his thoughts and Shé smiled as he gripped the curved blade in his hand tighter.

It was time for the show to begin.

He was already looking forward to their screams.

* * *

I hope you liked it! And if you find mistakes, please tell me!

Yours,

TTF


	19. Chapter 18

A/N.: Hi everyone! I'm really, really sorry about the late update! It's been over a month since the last one...

I don't really have an excuse to give you other than that the new semester started and I wasn't motivated to write. Despite that I'm really sorry and I hope that this chapter will be up to the usual standard. (Even though the end feels a little odd to me...)

I hope you'll enjoy the chapter and if you find mistakes of any kind, please tell me and I'll do my best to fix them!

Now on the the review-replies:

silvo: I'm really glad that you like this story and I'll do my best to keep the pauses between chapters short (though I can't really make any promises^^")

anon: I hope the plot doesn't get boring with time.^^

tigoxgirl: Sorry about the wait! I hope this chapter is up to your hopes and if it's not, please tell me about what's lacking.^^ I was thinking about doing that, but then I thought that Shé would probably like it more to let Hei watch his loved ones suffer. Being the sadist that he is.^^" I hope his craziness hasn't lessened in this chapter.

Alexandra Rider: I'm happy you like it and sorry for the long wait!

Xelena: This chapter will hopefully answer all of your questions (or most of them though I have the feeling that more will follow^^)

Tab/Tsuanyue: Sorry about the long wait! I was planning on updating on the 20th (which is my granddad's birthday), but somehow I didn't manage to finish in time. Which showed me that I suck at having deadlines.^^" This pairing really needs more love and I'm happy I can provide.^^

iwanMOAR: Don't worry, I know what you meant and I'm happy that I made your day.^^ Thanks for the well-wishes and again, I'm really sorry for the long wait!

Alice: Thanks! I'm sorry for the late update this time! Yep, he's pretty hurt emotionally so we'll see how that will influence him...

androgene: Again, I'm very sorry about the late update! I hope you won't get in trouble for it and thanks for the birthday wishes!^^

Thanks for reading and reviewing everyone! And now on to the chapter:

If there was one thing that Kirisaki Misaki hated, it was to not be in control of the people she was in charge of.

Especially if these people were Contractors and capable of wreaking havoc and mischief wherever they went.

Sighing while she massaged her temples she cursed the fact that the whole operation had gone down the drain without giving them the opportunity to stop it.

Li-kun and April had been supposed to go into the club and attract attention, then lead the potential killer outside into their hands.

The Chinese man wasn't supposed to vanish, November wasn't supposed to be kidnapped and BK-201 wasn't supposed to show up and cause trouble (though from what she had heard of the two witnesses, he had been fighting against the murderer who had already downed November).

"Here."

Startled she looked up at Saitou, who was holding a cup of coffee in his hand, a comforting smile on his face.

"Don't worry, we'll find them."

The determination in his voice was reassuring and she returned the smile with one of her own.

"I know. Let's get back to work."

Taking a deep swallow of the hot liquid in the cup, Misaki felt glad that the people around her cared enough about her to comfort her when she needed it. Usually she always reprimanded herself when she showed weakness, but this time she was too worried about her colleagues and friends to do such a thing.

Taking a last look around, she finished her break and started to walk back to their office to work, but paused in mid-step when a thought hit her.

"Where are April and July?"

*+*+*

"There is no way that's going to work. Hei's brother is a psycho, but he isn't stupid."

Mao glared at the woman in front of him and could feel sympathy rising in himself when he thought about Huang, who had managed to talk the dark skinned woman out of several outrageously stupid plans that would never have worked.

The oldest in their group was sitting on one of the benches on the playground and had put his head in his hands, either trying to gather the rest of his frayed patience or devising a murder-plot with which he would kill April.

"But it's perfect! I'll pretend to have a food delivery for them and when he opens the door, I'll jump him!"

Huang groaned pathetically in the background before he said something in a voice that could only be described as weary.

"Let me guess – November 11 is usually the one who takes care of strategies and all that, right?"

Surprised the amber eyed Contractor looked at the older man, though Mao could detect both indignation and amusement on her face.

"Let's stop this. Huang, what should we do? We need to hurry up with this or Hei will be another one of these mutilated corpses."

The man turned cat was surprised when the expression on the former cop's face was almost grateful and the Japanese man told them about what he had thought up.

"One of my contacts will call me soon about the licence-plate and after that it won't take us long to find them. Now I want you to do this…"

April arched an impressed eyebrow when she heard the plan and thought to herself that humans shouldn't be underestimated – something that most Contractors seemed to forget.

After everyone knew what to do and Huang had gotten several calls from people who knew something about a suspicious car with the same licence-plate, they knew the rough area in which they had to search.

"Now that we know that we can finally start. We'll split up into two teams and each one will have a Doll. April, Mao and July, you'll look south and I and Yin will look north."

Huang gave out ear-pieces with which they could communicate.

"If something happens tell me and I'll give you new orders. If you can't talk, improvise. And April," Huang looked at her for a moment, "don't try to do the thing with pretending to have a delivery. A psychopathic killer will probably invite you in and kill you while your back is turned."

The woman grinned.

"Awww, I knew you love me grandpa! Don't worry, I'll be careful."

She then proceeded to grab the stunned Mao and an apathetic July and ignored the way Huang spluttered and denied ever being worried.

Still grinning April skipped down the street, managing to ignore her worry for a moment.

"I wish he would work for the MI6 then I could tease him all the time."

Mao groaned and tried not to mind being carried in a rather painful way. He pitied Huang. From what he had observed, not even Hei and November could hold a candle against the enthusiastic woman and he doubted that his team-mate could stand a chance against her.

_I hope she won't concentrate on me…_

He admired the way she blackmailed and manipulated people, but that didn't mean that he wanted to find out her techniques first hand.

*+*+*

He knew that he had changed ever since his wife and daughter had left him, but he couldn't find it in himself to care.  
Again he drove the carved knife in his hands into the shuddering body hanging from the ceiling and couldn't contain the ecstatic smile when he heard the low groan that managed to slip past the blonde's defences.

A short look towards his brother showed him that 'Hei' was staring at them, his face blank but his eyes showing his anguish.

Smirking he twisted the knife in the body and relished the flinch that the resounding half-chocked scream managed to get out of the seemingly stoic assassin.

Shé relished the feel of the crimson fluid on his hands and face. It felt like he was coating his hands in chocolate, and it was wonderfully warm on his chilly skin, like a bath.

He suddenly and brutally ripped the knife out of the Brit's tense form and walked towards his other prisoner.

Mìng Yé stared at him, slowly boiling hatred gleaming in midnight sky coloured eyes and the older one marvelled at how beautiful they were.  
Maybe he would pull these pretty gems out of their sockets and keep them in a glass for only him to see.

The thought brought another smile to his face and he gently brushed one of his fingers across Hei's cheek, leaving a smear of blood.

_I wonder how it feels to have your lover's blood on you.  
_  
Maybe he should find out when he found his wife - that would be interesting.

"That's what you call torture? I feel worse after night going drinking with April. Honestly, the quality of villains and evil has certainly dropped in the last few years."

The Chinese man noticed his brother's pretty eyes widen when he heard the MI6 agent's mocking words and smiled gently at him, the younger one's reaction making him unable to feel angry.

"Don't worry little brother – I'll make him feel really bad before I start with you."

Cooing at the younger man who stared at him with a mix of horror, revulsion and fear in his eyes, Shé turned around again and his smile turned shark-like.

"And if it's the last thing I'll do."

Laughing softly and starting to hum a nonsensical tune, he walked back to the blonde, pulling another weapon off his work-bench.

"We'll have a lot of fun together and who knows? Maybe I'll keep you alive long enough for you to witness Mìng Yé's slow and torturous death!"

And he laughed and laughed and laughed and he slammed the crowbar in his hands against the blonde's legs and he knew then and there that he would never be able to stop hunting and inflicting pain on these demons in human skin.

*+*+*

When he had first seen his brother Hei had hesitated in killing the man he had once called friend, but now he had reached a point where he would gladly rip out Shé's throat with his teeth.

He could feel the hatred and loathing making his blood boil and only November's piercing eyes staring at him and warning him to be calm and quiet prevented him from trying to do so.

He hated it.

He hated _Shé_ and he knew that soon his fury would override his obedience and he would do something a person in this room would regret.

Whether that person would be him, November or his brother he didn't know, but he knew he would find out.

Biting his cheek he forced himself to watch as wooden cane descended again and again on the bloodied and wounded back of his lover and took in the way the skin was in tatters, hanging on to the rest of November's body with only pure luck.

Blood filled his mouth as he thought back to everything the older man had already endured and he hated the fact that the MI6 agent had taken his place.

It was Hei who should be hanging there, who should be subjected to his brother's revenge, not his lover who had only been at the wrong place at the wrong time.

Warm liquid flowed down his hands in a strange mockery of Shé's hands, who were also stained with blood.

The difference between them was that the blood coating Hei's hands was his own, as he had jerked and twisted his hands that were tied with rough rope behind his back to try and get one hand free.

His effort had been useless – the bonds were too tight for him to escape and while every doubt in his mind about killing had vanished, he knew that it was a bad idea to try something while his brother was holding several weapons to November's body.

It seemed that his brother had noticed his staring and walked towards him for the second time that night.

The assassin felt sick when he noticed how much blood November had to have lost already. His brother was practically soaked in it and a quick look at the blonde showed that the many injuries were taking their toll on him.

He could barely keep his eyes open and it looked like he was fighting to stay conscious.

"This is getting boring. He doesn't really react anymore and you're good at staying stoic too. I would think that you don't care at all weren't it for this."

Shé wiped one of his hands on his pants and then, gently brushed against the younger man's lips.

Hei was startled when he noticed the blood on it and licked his lips, realising that he had started to bite his lips and had bitten them bloody.

His brother stared at him for a moment, an oddly serious expression on his face before he suddenly slammed his fist into the assassin's face, causing the Contractor to crash to the floor together with the chair.

"Maybe I should start with you now."

The older man looked almost deliriously happy as he grabbed his brother by his shirt and started to drag him towards November, who had, despite his injuries, an angry expression on his face, glaring at his torturer.

Hei grimaced as his limbs started to hurt because of the chair he was still tied to as he was dragged across the room, but then forced his face back into its uncaring, emotionless mask.

He wasn't going to give his brother the satisfaction of seeing him scream or hurt no matter what was done to him.

The chair was pulled up and straightened again and Shé smirked at him before turning around and walking to a section on a wall. He pulled a lever and November landed on the floor in a painful position and started to cough.

It hurt to be unable to see if the blonde was alright, but there was nothing Hei could do against that while still being tied to a chair.

Shé looked at the unmoving blonde for a moment before shrugging and kicking November in the side to make more place.

The older man made to unlock the MI6 agent from the shackles constricting him, but then paused and left them as they were.

It seemed that, no matter how arrogant he was, he still knew better than freeing the Contractor like that – the metal was heavy and there was no way that the Brit, injured as he was, would be able to move with them.

Then Shé turned around and, using the momentum of the movement, hit his brother's face with all the strength he had. The chair Hei sat in tilted to its two left feet for a moment before the assassin moved his weight to keep it standing and the two other legs made a loud banging sound in the room.

"Since your little boyfriend is out of commission, let's have some fun little brother."

Hei glared at the man he had known years ago and spat saliva and blood at his brother's feet, growling low in his throat.

He would pay back everything he and November had and would endure thrice-fold.

*+*+*

It hurt. Breathing, moving, even just being conscious hurt more than enough to make him wish he were unconscious, but a familiar voice kept him from sinking back into the cool, comforting darkness that had occupied him moments before.

November forced his tired lids to rise, weakly trying to focus his eyes to see what was going on in front of him.

What he saw caused him to snap wide awake just in time to witness Hei and the chair he was bound to crash painfully on the floor.

The assassin's eyes were closed and November felt a wave of fury when he realised that Shé had beaten his brother black and blue.

"How boring. With both of you almost unconscious, torturing you will be pointless."

The honest disappointment in the man's voice set the Brit's blood boiling, but it froze in his veins when he heard what the killer said next.

"Maybe I should up the game a little. It will be interesting to see how blondie will react to seeing your face skinned little brother. Want to bet whether he'll recognize you or not?"

November closed his eyes until he could only see out of a small slit – he didn't want his lover's brother to find out he was awake.

It took all he had not to react when Shé roughly grabbed a handful of Hei's hair and dragged him back into a sitting position.

While he was busy, November moved his hands, careful not to make noise while he put his hands into his own blood and concentrated.

His breath caught in his throat when the serial killer took one of his knifes and made a shallow cut along the side of the syndicate member's face.

Hei didn't make a sound, though he had finally opened his eyes to glare at his brother defiantly, though it was obvious that he was struggling to stay conscious.

When he was finished with the cut, he brought the knife to it and was just going to start pulling off the skin when November made his move.

Shé screamed in both fury and pain when the frozen blade of blood that the MI6 agent had created was stabbed through his calf and turned around to kick the perpetrator.

November groaned when the foot collided with his already damaged ribs, but felt satisfied with his action.

He knew that there was little chance that he would be allowed to pay his remuneration, but he didn't care. He wouldn't allow that bastard to hurt Shengshun even more than he already had, come what may.

The fury in Shé's expression was frightening, but he didn't do more than hit his brother one more time, causing him to crash to the floor again and leave the room, obviously wanting to take care of his own wound before taking revenge.

November closed his eyes and felt unconsciousness try to claim him when a hand on his forehead let him open his eyes again.

Startled he stared at his lover who was leaning over him and repeating a question before realising that he wasn't going to get an answer and started to search the MI6 agent's clothes.

Forcing himself to stay awake, the Brit wondered how Hei had managed to free himself until he noticed the blood on them – the younger man had practically de-gloved himself to get his hands free.

Soon he felt the reason for that when Shengshun shoved a cigarette between his lips and lighted it with a lighter he had hidden in his shoe.

When that was done, the assassin sat back and waited.

*+*+*

Hei couldn't help but sigh in relief when he finally found the cigarette in November's belt and the lighter in his shoe.

He himself had never had a remuneration and while he knew that it could be procrastinated for some time while fighting, he also knew that it was better to pay as soon as possible.

The Brit was staring at him, obviously only barely comprehending what was going on, but the assassin didn't miss the spark of gratefulness in the older man's expression when the cigarette was lit.

Hei tried to sit back in a relatively comfortable position, but his hands were hurting together with his face and chest and his feet were still bound to the chair behind him.

His own injuries were nothing against November's though, so he simply gritted his teeth and thought about how he would be able to get them out of here.

The police, November's and his own team were probably already searching for him and he wondered how much time had gone by while they had been unconscious and while they had been tortured, but couldn't say for sure.

The room didn't have a window and the only light in it came from a bare light bulb near the door, so their – or maybe only his – sense of time had completely gone down the drain.

Hei made sure to keep an eye on the door, hoping that Shé would leave them alone long enough for November to finish his cigarette and it seemed that luck was with them for once.

November finished and the assassin took the cigarette, crushed it on the floor and then threw it in one of the room's corners.

His eyes met the older man's and he smiled at him, trying to be reassuring, but thinking about what was going to happen.

He was sure that Shé wasn't going to take being injured lying down and it was probable he would concentrate on November again.

He hoped that his brother would continue with himself though, since his hands were now free and there now was a chance that he would be able to knock the older man out with a large electroshock.

The thought of the first possibility made him grit his teeth in anger and he ran one of his blood-drenched hands through the Brit's hair, ignoring the way it stained the fair locks.

It was then that Hei noticed that November had finally lost consciousness and so he returned the lighter to the older man's shoe and painfully climbed back onto his chair, taking the rope he had freed himself of and wrapping it around his wrists.

He would be able to get free easily now but it still looked like he was bound tightly.

Then he closed his eyes and waited.

*+*+*

The sound of a door opening let Hei snap awake. He had either fallen asleep or, considering his wounds, lost consciousness.

It took all he had to keep his body relaxed and his breathing even but he managed to do it despite the anxiousness he felt when he thought about his brother being near him.

A cold splash of water 'woke' him, since he couldn't hold back a sharp gasp at the unexpected action.

"Are you awake now little brother? Really, falling asleep when you haven't finished entertaining me is quite impolite."

Shé smiled and his tone was conversational, but Hei had worked long enough with Contractors and scumbags to know that there was a dangerous rage lurking behind the pleasant façade.

The older man grabbed a second bucket filled with water and dumped it over the still unconscious November 11.

Despite the grim situation the assassin felt vengeful glee rise up inside of him as he watched the cold, clear fluid form puddles on the floor.

He knew that Yin would be able to find them now and he had no doubt that she would bring Huang and his never-ending arsenal of weapons with her and if he was lucky, she wouldn't forget his knife.

He was almost sorry about the pain he would make his brother go through for doing this to him and November, but only almost, because he knew that he would savour Shé's screams while he was tearing him to shreds.

*+*+*

Hung knew that they had won the race against time as soon as Yin stopped, tilted her head a little and nodded.

"I know where he is."

She didn't need to say anything more since Huang was busy contacting April and her group but she smiled quietly and relieved.

Hei was her friend and she liked him a lot and November was July's friend and while she knew that Hei cared about things like family and which everyone else in their group had already given up, she was glad that her team-mate would soon be safe again – or at least as safe as it ever got with their job.

*+*+*

April gripped the cat in her arm tighter to prevent herself from sighing in relief as she pulled on July's hand to make him go faster.

It probably wasn't the kindest thing to do, but she knew he wouldn't be upset with her – he wanted to find November as much as she did. He had led her to his little girlfriend after all, despite knowing that they were enemies and she could try to arrest them.

Looking ahead she could already see Huang and Yin and quickened her step even more, shooting the Doll clinging to her hand an apologizing smile as she pulled him along.

Huang was opening one of the cars parked nearby and she was even more impressed by the older man's skills when he opened the trunk and revealed more weapons than she could count.

Panting slightly she finally closed the last few meters and came to a halt, letting go of Mao and July as she tried to catch her breath.

A look at the Doll made her once again wonder about a Doll's constitution – despite her being out of breath and panting, the boy was breathing evenly and not a bead of sweat could be seen on his skin.

He and every other Doll she had met so far was damn tough – they could survive things that an ordinary human could never endure and that was probably part of the reason why they were notorious for being soulless, emotionless beings.

Yin had an unfocussed look on her face that April had long since learned to recognize as 'concentrating while tracking someone' and she felt her usual enthusiasm return to her.

Despite being a Contractor, she was energetic by nature and loved to tease people – she usually never had to act, like she knew that November had done before meeting Shengshun (and as he still occasionally did) and when she had to, it was exhausting for her and made her wish she could lie down somewhere and sleep.

Now she could feel her energy return to her and smirked in anticipation of what would happen.

As soon as he had finished his weapon-check, Huang turned towards them and started to talk.

"This is what we're going to do…"

She couldn't wait to rip that killer apart piece by piece.

*+*+*

Shé knew that something was going on.

Instead of the fear and anger he had expected in his brother's usually dead eyes, there was something like triumph glinting in them – something that no sane person would feel in such a situation.

His breath quickening in both anger and terror, the serial murderer brutally hit 'Hei''s face and body again and again, hoping to finally get rid of this ridiculous anxiousness that plagued him.

He had wanted to concentrate on November after that bastard had injured him, but after noticing that strange look on his brother's face he had been unable to continue as planned.

He knew why his heart was racing – that expression and the glint of joyful cruelty on the younger man's face was similar to the one he had seen on the face of the first Contractor he had ever met – the one who had cost him his first child.

His first child, that would have matured to look like Shé and who had been taken from him by a crimson eyed demon who had glowed with a beautiful silver light.

Stumbling backwards the Chinese man was surprised when the room suddenly started to swim and twist until he realised that he was hyperventilating.

He could see the same crimson gaze as that time and someone was screaming loudly enough to hurt his ears and then that cursed silver light appeared and he tried to hit the demon, the monster he was trying to get rid of, the _thing_ that had stolen his brother and he couldn't hear the door opening behind him, couldn't hear anything other than that cursed scream, couldn't see anything other than cursed, blood-red eyes and silver light and then there was a loud noise, louder even than the scream he heard and a sharp pain in his side and as he started to collapse and as the scream vanished, he realised that the one screaming had been him.

*+*+*

Startled Hei stared at Huang, who stood in the doorway and held a smoking gun before his gaze returned to the body now lying on the floor.

Shé was still conscious, but he had stopped screaming and simply staring into space, a strange expression on his face.

The assassin had been shocked when the older man had suddenly started to scream in a way that made Hei's head hurt and had made him cautious.

He had freed his arms and was just about to use his powers when the door had been thrown open and his brother had been shot.

Somehow it was rather anticlimactic, he couldn't help but think to himself, that Shé had gone down that easily.

As if he had heard his thoughts, the serial-killer on the floor suddenly got up and launched himself at Hei, who had stopped glowing and who had finally relaxed – a stupid and unprofessional thing to do.

Cold, clammy hands wrapped themselves around his throat and the chair, which had taken much abuse already, fell backwards and was smashed apart by the combined weight of two adults and a hard concrete floor.

Without thinking about it Hei used his powers and sent a shock through his brother, wrenching a pained scream out of the man who had caused him as much – if not more – pain.

"That's enough."

Only Huang's voice stopped him from killing the man he had once been able to recognise as his brother outright and so he reluctantly shoved the man off him and stumbled to his feet.

April's exclamation of shock made him realise that his team hadn't come alone and while he knew that November would be able to silence her, he still felt awkward in her presence as Hei and without his mask.

Without giving her a second glance he quickly walked to November, who had fallen unconscious again and hadn't woken despite Shé's loud scream and the shot.

It scared the assassin.

November had been beaten and tortured badly and he knew that the Brit needed medical attention as soon as possible.

"You need to call an ambulance."

"I know." The dark skinned woman snapped at him before rummaging through her purse and getting her cell-phone out.

While she called an ambulance – and probably the police – Huang glared at the assassin before sighing in exasperation and kneeling down beside the MI6 agent.

With only a few delicate movements the ex-policeman had opened the shackles constricting November and then wiped his fingerprints off.

"We need to get our story straight. The woman over there told me already that eyewitnesses told the police that BK-102 and November 11 were kidnapped by this guy over there. There was no mention of you, so without a good story it will look strange if you suddenly show up. Let's say that he had already put you into the car when November showed up and started to fight him. The BK-201 got also involved and they were kidnapped.

The two witnesses were too drunk to see you in the car and from then on you don't know what happened to the Black Reaper.

You know how to act oblivious and to not give away information you shouldn't know, so I'll leave that to you. Mao, Yin and I are going to leave now and the kid and April will handle the rest.

Contact me as soon as you can talk alone and your injuries were taken care of."

The short man opened his mouth as of to add something to that, but then he closed it again, sending Hei one last unreadable look before he climbed back to his feet and left together with Yin and Mao, who had probably stayed outside to make sure that nobody was coming.

The assassin was relieved that Huang had already given him a cover-story to use. He was a good liar and could come up with a complete alternate universe for himself in a second, but after everything that had happened since Shé had shown his face, he doubted that he could fool a three years old child.

Just then a groan caught his attention and he immediately looked at his lover, but it hadn't been November who had moved.

Stunned he and April, who had paused in the middle of a sentence, stared at Shé, who had grabbed a knife lying near him and who was looking around the room with a crazed expression on his face.

*+*+*

As he lay on the floor, bleeding from a serious wound, Shé again felt the hot, boiling hatred he experience whenever he looked at a monster rise up inside of him.

He had been betrayed.

_He _ had told him that now demon could ever have allies that would come to save them.

_He_ , who had made it possible for him to get rid of all these demon-look-a-likes and who had given him the opportunity to kill the demon that his brother had become, had lied to him.

_He_ was another demon who had deceived him.

Only through sheer willpower did he manage to open his eyes, spotting the knife lying on the floor only a few feet away.

Another short glance through the room showed him that nobody paid attention to him, believing him to be dead already.

The dark skinned woman was calling someone, the short, burly man had disappeared together with the silver haired girl – obviously another demon – and his brother was busy with the blonde man lying on the floor, still unconscious.

The small blonde boy standing behind the amber-eyed woman was simply staring at a wall, looking catatonic, so Shé took the chance and slowly robbed towards the knife, excruciating inch by excruciating inch.

When he had finally reached it, he carefully wrapped his hand around the handle. He would only get one chance at this.

Turning around he noticed that the woman was now yelling at someone while the blonde boy was watching her with empty eyes.

They were also demons, but not the one he wanted to destroy the most.

Gritting his teeth, he fought himself back to his feet and then stormed forward, intent on stabbing the large knife into his brother's slender back.

He didn't scream, he didn't make any sound, but still, the younger man turned around as though a devil had told him to do so and saw Shé with the knife in his hand, the blade already descending on him.

*+*+*

Stunned Hei stared at his brother, who was just about to plunge a knife into his back, a crazed expression on his face, all pretence of sanity forgotten and discarded.

Reflexively the assassin used his power, grabbing his brother's arm and releasing electricity through his hands, letting it course through the older man's body, who dropped the knife and started to scream.

April and July turned around at the sound and stared at the scene in front of them, shock clearly written on their faces, as Hei did his best to kill the one who had caused him and November that much pain.

A warm hand on his arm stopped him from continuing and he turned to look at his lover, who was now conscious.

"Stop… No explanation… His death… Wait… Alibi…"

Gritting his teeth as the Brit's voice waned and he lost consciousness again, Hei looked back at his brother, who was looking out of it and gave him one last defiant shock before shoving him away and letting him collapse on the floor.

"Well. That was a show."

April sounded shaken as she tried to make light of the situation, but she was interrupted by the sound of sirens that were coming closer.

The only thing they could really do now was to wait.

*+*+*

It had been two days since he and November had been saved and taken to the hospital and the MI6 agent still hadn't woken up.

April had managed to get them a double room to prevent them from being separated, knowing that they were both horrible patients and to impulsive to stay in bed when the other wasn't in their sight after such an ordeal.

She, July and Mao had been visiting frequently and barely let the unlucky duo out of their sight.

One reason was to reassure themselves that they were alright, the other reason was that Shé was being treated in the same hospital (he had surprisingly survived the electroshocks and the gunshot-wound) and they wanted to make sure that Hei didn't get up and murder his brother in his sleep.

The assassin always felt homicidal when someone mentioned the serial-murderer and during the time that he had been questioned by the police about what had happened he had had a blood-thirsty glint in his eyes that, thankfully, the police hadn't noticed.

Currently the syndicate member was lying in the hospital bed he had been forced into (he was growing to hate hospitals even more than he already had), various IVs and machinery connected to his body.

Most of them were only precautionary to prevent infection and to make sure he got enough fluid and such things, but despite telling people that he didn't need them, they ignored him and were annoyed when he removed them himself.

_Meddling idiots,_ was the least offensive thing he thought to describe them.

Hei feigned sleep, partly so he wouldn't be bothered by overly enthusiastic nurses and partly because April and Mao were talking about his brother's whereabouts and condition.

"They should probably take Shé to a different hospital if they want him to be alive for the interrogation," Mao muttered.

"I doubt that they'll get something out of him anyways – the shocks that Hei gave that guy probably fried most of his brain. He still hasn't woken up, they said."

April was as nonchalant as always and the assassin wondered why she took him being BK-201 that easily and without doubts and fussing. It was odd to say the least.

"Maybe it would be best were he to stay unconscious or even dead. Then we wouldn't have to deal with the worries of him starting to blab about things that he shouldn't talk about."

Mao's words probably sounded callous to a normal human, but to April and Hei they sounded perfectly rational and the assassin was already planning on how he would best get rid of his brother.

He closed his eyes and let sleep take him, a vague plan of the assassination in his head.

*+*+*

Forcing himself to breathe evenly and ignoring the pain he felt from his wounds, Hei calmly closed the window behind him, fluidly moving towards the bed standing in the middle of the room.

It would have been easy for him to knock out the guards stationed in front of the room, but he wanted this to look as natural as possible and unconscious policemen were anything but natural.

It was strange to see his crazed brother lying in a bed, eyes closed almost like he was sleeping peacefully.

Like this he looked more like the brother that Hei had missed sometimes ever since they had separated ten years ago and less like the cruel serial killer who didn't hesitate to torture his victims to death.

It hurt a little to be able to see his brother in the monster that had caused that many people pain, but Hei supposed that he wasn't all that different from Shé.

_I guess being cold-blooded murderers is in our blood._

Shaking his head at that thought, the assassin put his hand on his brother's forehead and called forth his power, illuminating the room with the pale, silvery glow characteristic for Contractors.

It was then that his brother opened his eyes, staring into Hei's glowing red ones and he started to scream.

The assassin cursed under his breath and jerked his hand away, rushing to the window and opening it, knowing that the policemen would come through the door as soon as they managed to unlock it.

"I'll come back to get you, dear older brother. No matter where you are I'll come and rip you apart piece by piece, so keep your mouth shut about me."

The dark haired man deliberately let his eyes glow before he retreated. He had spoken these words on a whim, but he had the feeling that they would be effective if Shé's hysterical screams were anything to go by.

*+*+*

"Did you know? It seems that they had to transfer your brother to an asylum for mentally unstable criminals."

April's voice was casual, but the sharpness in her gaze made it obvious that her reasons for asking such a thing were anything but that.

"I heard. Misaki-san came today to tell me about it." Hei's reply was as cold and uncaring as usual, but the dark-skinned woman didn't believe the act for a second.

"You did something to him, didn't you? He was screaming about demons coming to eat him before he stopped being coherent and just started screaming. The doctors also said that he was traumatised by something and that there was little chance of him recovering, considering that he is terrified of people with dark hair and pale skin."

Hei just shrugged when he heard that. It would be difficult to take care of his brother while Shé was in a mental hospital, but it wasn't impossible and the assassin was going to fulfil the promise he had given his brother come what may.

Seeing that the assassin didn't care about what she was saying and wondering why she was even playing the moral apostle when she too thought that the serial killer was better off dead, April changed the topic.

"I talked to your team-mate, Huang and got him to tell me about everything. He was glaring at me the whole time though so I don't think he like me a lot."

The dark skinned woman was smirking when she said that, obviously amused at the older man's attitude and Hei allowed himself a moment to pity the Japanese man who was now apparently April's new plaything.

Then her gaze turned serious and Hei knew that he wasn't going to like what was coming next.

"I also talked to November's doctors and they told me that it will probably take him some time to wake up. His injuries were really severe and they said that it's a miracle that he didn't die due to blood-loss and internal injuries before the ambulance came. Because of the nature of his wounds he could wake up today or only in three months."

The dark haired man closed his eyes, guilt mixing with grief, regret and loathing on his face and he again felt the familiar feeling of despair trying to take hold of him.

He had felt it the whole time while being held captive by his brother and he should have known better than to hope that everything would be alright as soon as Shé was taken care of.

Nothing was ever easy for the Black Reaper and those he had come to care for.

Taking a deep breath before opening his eyes again, he told himself that he should have known better than to get close to people, no matter how capable they were – it seemed that the people he had already lost weren't example enough for him to finally learn that.

April was looking at him with an odd expression on her face and he looked at her questioningly, wondering what she had to say.

"You really do love him, don't you? When I first heard that you were BK-201 I thought that you had gotten close to November to gather information or to prevent him from fighting you, but Mao told me that it was November who took the first step and convinced you to give him a shot. And now I just realised that you really do care for him. I'm sorry," she added, smiling slightly in disbelief, "I just never thought that my team-mate's lover could be the man whom they call Black Reaper – the coldest, most brutal and cunning assassin that the world has seen in over a century."

The disbelief slowly vanished to be replaced by her usual mischievous expression. "November really knows how to pick them. And to think that it all started when Misaki-chan mentioned your name carelessly over dinner..."

She laughed and then left, leaving Hei to wonder about what she was talking about.

*+*+*

It was three days later when they got the news that Shé had committed suicide. Nobody knew where he had gotten the knife from and when she asked Hei, the assassin only shrugged. April couldn't say whether his surprise was real or feigned and after thinking about it she didn't really want to know either.

She was happy that the one who had put her team-mate into such a bad state was gone, whether the syndicate member had anything to do with it or not didn't really matter in the end, as long as he wasn't caught.

November still hadn't woken up and it visibly wore on the blonde's lover, who felt guilty that his brother had been the one to injure the MI6 agent to get revenge on the dark haired one.

But the only thing they could do was to wait.

*+*+*

"This is Decade. I disposed of the man called Shé. November is out of commission, which means that we can move about a little more freely. I have already given Huang a new mission that should distract the team for a while.

There is a chance that Amber will be there to meddle, but considering Hei's hatred of her there is little chance that they will work together."

"..."

"Yes, I understand."

"..."

"I understand. The termination of Codename: April will be initiated as soon as possible."

* * *

I hope you enjoyed it! And it ends with another cliffhanger. Hopefully I won't need as long to update as this time...

Yours,

TTF


	20. Chapter 19

A/N: I feel horrible. I told you guys that I'd do my best to update in less than a month and what do I do? Update after almost two months. :(

I'm really sorry about that and the only excuse I have is that this chapter was hell to write. When I wanted to start writing it, for the first time since I started this story my mind was completely and utterly blank and only after several weeks could I think of something to write.

Because I pulled this chapter out of my brain kicking and screaming I'm not sure about the quality (even less than usual) so I hope it won't disappoint you.

On to the review-replies then!

**iwanMOAR:** I think so too. Despite his psycho-ness Shé was one of my favourite OC-characters and he made a great villain, didn't he? I know how it is to need distraction from studies so I'm glad I could help.^^ As for the other quetions... well, I don't want to spoil anything.^^

**androgene:** Your review was very relieving, thanks!^^ It's good that you think the ending last chapter was good and that you didn't get into trouble.^^ I'm not sure about the fluff in this chapter (if it even has any because my idea of fluff is probably a little skewered...). I hope you'll enjoy this one!

**tigoxgirl:** Thanks for your reviews!^^ I'm really sorry that I didn't update earlier and I hope you'll enjoy this chapter as much as the last one, though you'll have to wait a little for what you want.^^ Decade's identity isn't really a secret since it's the canon code-name for... uh, do you want me to tell you?

**Kingsofnothing:** Don't worry about the reviewa, I'm the one who is sorry for the long wait I put you through! I hope this chapter is as good as the others since it feels a bit rushed to me. I thought the flash-back chapters about Hei's past were a bit long and I'm happy that you think that they're okay.^^ The cliffhanger in this chapter is less bad than in the other chapters so don't worry about this one.^^ Thanks for reading and reviewing!

**anon:** I hope you didn't have to check too long for this chapter. Thanks for reading and reviewing!^^

And I want to thank everyone who reviewed! Your comments kicked the parts of this chapter out of my brain when I thought it was completely empty, so thanks for that!^^

* * *

Gently April opened the door to the already familiar room that her team-mate had been occupying for the last month.

Visiting hours were almost over and she knew that the person she was looking for was always here at this time.

As expected, the slender figure of Hei – also called BK-201, Black Reaper and Li Shengshun – was seated in the chair beside November's bed and one of his hands was placed over an unresponsive arm.

The dark skinned woman took a moment to muster the Chinese man and felt a pang of sympathy when she noticed that he had lost weight and – if the circles beneath his eyes were anything to go by – wasn't sleeping well.

Both she and July missed the blonde man, who still hadn't woken up, and they visited him regularly, but they could still function normally. The assassin in front of her was obviously in pain because of what happened, his physical wounds almost healed, his mental ones still raw and hurting.

April couldn't imagine what Hei must have felt when he had watched his brother torture his lover and she didn't want to either.

What worried her was that there was a strange distance in the dark haired man's eyes that hadn't been there before.

He had been cautious, yes, but not really distant. On the second day, after the assassin had finally been allowed to sit beside November, she had watched helplessly as a door, that her team-mate had gradually and painfully pried open, started to close again.

She had tried to talk to the syndicate member, to reassure him that November was going to be alright, but she hadn't had any success.

The longer the blonde slept, the more the door closed and she didn't think that November was going to be able to open it again.

Carefully she stepped closer to the assassin and then gently called his name despite knowing that he already knew that she was in the room.

She knew from Mao that even Huang was treating the Chinese man with care, like one would treat a hurt and exhausted lion, and she could understand why.

It was obvious that Hei was hurt, but there was also an underlying sense of danger around him, making the people around him think that he was going to lash out were someone to say something wrong.

It wasn't a good feeling, but Huang had told Mao that he had heard that, after Pai – Hei's sister – died, he had been like that, only worse, because he had really lashed out then, uncaring of whom he hurt in the process.

April wondered what the other Contractor was thinking when he turned to her, his eyes darker than usual.

She had also been told about what had happened on their last mission, about Huang's former lover and how she had met her end and the dark skinned woman didn't know what kind of effect that would have on the Chinese man, who was as, if not more, emotional than a human.

*+*+*

Hei had known she had been standing at the door, had known that she would come to look for him, to talk to him about what happened at their last mission, but he had ignored her, hoping despite himself that she would change her mind and leave him alone to brood – something that he had been doing more and more often after the incident with his brother.

_Incident, huh?_ He thought with disgust. _It was more a disaster than anything else._

And while the mission they had had hadn't been too difficult, Huang had screwed up and almost killed them all with his curiosity and Hei was tired.

He was tired of hospitals, he was tired of missions, he was tired of the concern that November's team and his own showed him and he was tired of November not waking up.

Still ignoring April, he gently took the blonde's hand into his own one, placing his fingertips at the older man's wrist to reassure himself that the MI6 agent really was alive and not lying dead in the bed while the machines continued to beep uselessly.

He relaxed a little when he felt the even pulse, but a part of him still felt tense, stretched to the breaking point and he wondered what would happen were he to snap.

_Probably nothing good,_ he thought dryly to himself.

It was strange to see November lying in a hospital bed looking like he was sleeping. It wasn't the first time that Hei had seen the MI6 agent sleep, but somehow he couldn't help but think that he had never seen the blonde look that vulnerable.

_Because of me. Because of my brother, who wanted revenge. Because November was to stupid and too caring and not like a Contractor at all, sacrificing himself for me._

Because that was what had happened – the Brit had come to the club just because Hei had insisted on playing bait and he had been captured because he had fought Shé on Shengshun's account.

He had been tortured to spare the assassin the pain.

Guilt couldn't even begin to describe how Hei felt and to be honest he didn't want to describe it at all.

The emotions inside himself made him want to scream, to hit and destroy something but even his revenge had been taken from him by his brother, who had cowardly committed suicide before Hei could kill him.

Ever since he had been told that nobody knew just when – or if at all – November was going to wake up there had been a strange emptiness in the assassin's head.

He could function, he could go on missions, he could eat and sleep and talk and pretend to be happy Li Shengshun, but it was as if a switch had been flipped inside his mind and had shut off his thought-process.

Sometimes guilty, self-loathing thoughts managed to form in his mind but even they vanished after some time and left the Chinese man with nothing to do but stare at his lover's face and wonder when – if – he was going to wake up.

Hei hated it, this strange feeling of 'existing' that was completely different from the sensation of 'living' that he had come to know after meeting the MI6 team.

It was a feeling that he still remembered well and with which he had lived for years after the Heaven's Gate in South America had vanished together with his sister.

_I can't do this anymore._

The thought struck him with sudden clarity and the assassin had to think some time until he realised what it was about.

_I can't give my whole self to another person anymore. I did it with Pai. I did it with November._

_And look where that got me._

Hei closed his eyes, not wanting to continue that train of thought, wanting to simply sit there and wait until November woke up, but he couldn't help himself.

_It hurts this much just because November is asleep. What would happen were he to die?_

It felt like he had been hit by a truck and he had to blink away the tears that threatened to escape his eyes.

_It would destroy me,_ he realised dimly. _It would hurt and hurt and hurt and it wouldn't go away no matter what I did and-_

_Just like the time Pai vanished. When she died, when she-_

Hei barely realised that he was panting, almost hyperventilating and so he jumped to his feet and pushed out of the room, ignoring April's concerned voice, walking quickly until he left the hospital and then starting to run and run and run until the thoughts he had had in his head vanished.

Only when he had exhausted himself did he slow to a halt, leaning his hands on his knees and trying not to collapse due to a lack of air.

He felt guilty for ignoring April like that, but at that moment he really hadn't been able to stomach the company of a moving, talking person.

Mao had probably told her about the mission they had had one week ago and the dark skinned woman was probably worried – though she would never admit it – about him and Huang.

Seeing Huang and Shioko and witnessing the other Contractor's sacrifice had hit close to home and ever since he had witnessed her death he had been unable to get the picture of her corpse overlapping with November's out of his head.

The other syndicate member, a Contractor who should be unable to feel anything, had sacrificed herself for someone she cared about and who would have died for her.

The assassin wondered whether he could have saved the woman had he noticed and eliminated the observer that the syndicate had sent after them, or would he have failed just like all the times before when he had tried to protect someone.

It was ironic – he had power and strength that few people could rival but he was incapable of saving someone.

The only thing that he had never failed at was to destroy or kill someone.

It was no wonder that he was the best assassin that his organisation had to offer when he destroyed people without even wanting to.

And then there was the talk he had with Alma, the church's leader. It had unsettled him and made him think about things that he had previously taken for granted and he still couldn't decide whether that was a good thing or not.

She had said that she could dream and that she had done her best to help other Contractors become free from the rule that the various organisations and governments had over them and that had made him wonder why the syndicate wanted her to die.

If he really thought about it, it was logical – the syndicate wanted to eliminate the threat to the obedience of their killing-machines and had succeeded by sending their best assassin.

It had made Hei wonder whether he should have cornered the aged woman like that, despite the fact that she didn't have long left to live anyways.

It had also made him think about the syndicate that he and the rest of his team served.

The way they had tested and punished Huang had been cruel and senseless and while he understood that unprofessional and irrational behaviour could be fatal to a mission, he still felt an ache in his chest when he remembered the look on his team-mate's face when the ex-policeman had admitted that he couldn't kill his former lover.

Slowly his breath evened out as he simply concentrated on calming down and banished everything else from his mind.

_I need to stop this before it destroys me._

_I need to let go of him._

_Now._

*+*+*

Exhausted April closed the door to her and her team-mates' apartment.

She had spent the last few hours at the hospital trying to convince herself that November was going to wake up soon, but she didn't have a lot of success.

After leaving the hospital she had considered going out and drinking herself into oblivion, but she had quickly discarded that idea after thinking it.

There would be no half-amused, half-annoyed November who watched July while she was out and who would pick her up and pay her bills after the club or bar she was in called the number on the business card she kept in her purse.

He wasn't there to make sure she got into bed alright and who teased her the next morning while giving her pain-killers for her hangover.

Taking a shaky breath and exhaling just as shakily, the dark skinned woman carefully slipped off her shoes and soundlessly walked to July's room, opening the door and looking at the still and sleeping form of the boy.

She felt guilty that she had been neglecting the young Doll though she hadn't been able to help it.

She had had to inform her superiors of November's injuries and the cause of them, as well as keeping the heat and the attention off Hei and the police.

It was tiring, talking, manipulating and quarrelling with her superiors, but somehow she had managed to do it and today they had finally agreed to wait until November woke up until they continued their investigation.

April just stared at July's small form and again wished that November was there to deal with everything.

The blonde man had always been good at dealing with other people while the blue haired woman had too quick a temper and too little interest in internal politics to deal with them.

And because she had mostly been partnered with November, she had never really needed to, easily trusting her team-mate with the well-being of their little family.

The family that had suddenly grown larger since entering Japan and which now consisted of July and Yin as the children, April as the crazy aunt, Huang as the grouchy grandfather, Mao as pet and mood-maker – she smirked as she imagined the other Contractor's indignant glare he would have shot her would he know about her thoughts – November as the exasperated and overworked father and Hei as the temperamental and responsible mother.

This time April winced when she thought about the reaction she would get were the Black Reaper to know about her thoughts, but it was true.

Both Yin and July adored the Chinese man, though they weren't obvious about it and Mao told her that after Huang had found out about their relationship, he had glared at November like a father disapproving of his daughter's boyfriend.

A smile crossed her face at that comparison and the dark skinned woman quickly closed the door to the Doll's room, not wanting to wake the boy up in case she started to laugh.

She herself couldn't help but think of the assassin as a younger brother that she could tease, while November was her best friend.

She couldn't really tell what Mao thought of Hei, but she knew that he was interested in the Chinese man's actions and would overlook many things that the syndicate would disapprove of just to satisfy his curiosity.

And November…

Anyone who watched their interaction for a minute would be able to tell that the Brit was head over heels in love with the assassin and while Hei was a lot more reserved than the blonde, April knew that the dark haired male reciprocated her friend's feelings.

While the dark skinned woman was happy that November had found someone to make him do stupid things, it also made what happened to the two men more painful to watch.

The amber eyed woman moved to her own room and started to undress.

She didn't really know what had happened to the syndicate's assassin in the past. Neither Mao, nor Huang or Yin knew anything specific about it, but she had been told that Hei's sister Pai had vanished or died because of February's betrayal.

That had made her think about the Chinese man's behaviour recently and she knew that he saw the similarities between these incidents.

Betrayed by his team-mate he lost his sister.

Betrayed by his brother he had lost his lover – whether it was permanently or temporarily was to be seen.

And then the incident with Huang and Shioko…

It was a wonder that Hei hadn't cracked yet, though the strain of the situation could clearly be seen in his eyes.

She worried for both him and November and she didn't know how to help them.

The weight of her small family now rested on her shoulder and she had no idea how to carry it.

*+*+*

_He knew that he was dreaming._

_It couldn't be anything else and he wondered why he was having such a nightmare. He was standing in a world of grey, buildings and streets around him, but devoid of colour, like in a black and white movie._

_He couldn't help but swallow nervously, somehow knowing that nothing good could happen in such a dream._

_He was right._

_After several moments, the shadows of the buildings started to move and twist, flowing together like sentient beings to create a familiar being that looked just as grey as the rest of this world._

_Slowly he walked closer to this figure, his heart pounding in his chest, a sick feeling in his stomach._

_Hei stared back at him, his black hair and pale skin almost the same shade as he remembered and for a moment he thought that he had the real one in front of him._

_He would have thought that if not for one thing._

_Hei's eyes._

_The midnight sky coloured orbs of his lover had always captivated him, from the moment they had met he had been unable to keep his eyes off them, at first fooling himself with simple curiosity as the reason for his interest._

_Now he knew better._

_Hesitantly he reached out to touch the younger man's cheek, pausing before letting his fingertips slide across smooth skin._

_November froze as suddenly colour flooded the form of the assassin, colouring his clothes blue and white, his skin-tone colouring slightly, but still being pale and beloved eyes regaining the blue that made them extraordinary._

_Then a crack sounded through the silent city and the blonde stared at the hand on his lover's cheek, horrified by the silvery glow that surrounded it and knowing that his eyes glowed red._

_Hei's body started to crack in various places, his expression frozen in surprise and November could only watch as the assassin's body crumbled and shattered, leaving behind only a pile of icy shards._

*+*+*

Smirking April slid the disk she held in her hands into her purse, feeling accomplished and relieved that she had finished her mission.

She hated going on missions without her team-mates, but she hadn't had another choice this time, what with November in a coma and July being sick.

A few days after she had dealt with their superiors, and three weeks after her team-mate's kidnapping, the boy had unexpectedly fallen ill and so she had had to deal with the few upcoming missions on her own.

Hei had offered to help, but she had only told him to take care of July, whom she didn't want to leave alone, while she had accepted Mao's offer of him making sure that she could sneak into a building without problems.

For some reason the MI6 had given her an mission with the objective of infiltration, despite knowing that she was horrible at that.

She loved attracting attention and she had always been too energetic and vocal to deal well with hiding and waiting.

That had almost made her accept Hei's offer, but she knew that, were anyone to find out about this, they would both be in trouble too deep to get out of without some serious fire-power.

Fire-power that they didn't have currently.

April's Contractor-power was a passive one, which was one of the reasons she had been paired with November, and while the Black Reaper could use the water she was capable of creating just as well as November, using it while she let it rain was always a danger to her, him and the rest of the people around.

Sighing slightly, she continued to walk home when she felt oddly like she was being watched.

Without breaking her stride or changing her expression, she carefully looked around, wanting to make sure whether she was being watched or not.

The small black button in her ear gave off a crackling sound and then she could hear Mao's voice coming from it.

"_Not that I want to worry you, but there's someone following you."_

April cursed inwardly, careful to keep a nonchalant expression on her face.

"_You probably won't be able to talk like this, so I'm telling you who it is and then we make a clean get-away, alright?"_

The man-turned-cat didn't wait for an answer, knowing her wasn't going to get one.

_There are two men and one woman. The woman is Caucasian, light brown hair, green eyes, wearing a revealing dress and a long dark brown coat. She's hanging on the arm of a man, tall, also Caucasian with black hair and brown eyes, wearing a dark blue suit._

_The other man is Japanese, late teens, black hair and black eyes, wearing headphones and a red windbreaker._

_Do you see them?"_

This time Mao waited for an answer and April took her time to locate all of them, looking first for the teenager, then for the two Caucasian agents or assassins.

She managed to locate them with little trouble, but when she looked at the man with the woman hanging off his arm, she almost paused, barely managing to cover it up.

The man seemed strangely familiar and she wondered where she had seen him before.

Now that she knew where her followers were, she tilted her head slightly to make sure that her face couldn't be seen and answered.

"_Yeah, I see them, thanks. I'm going to the hospital to November. It's too dangerous to go to the apartment and I doubt that they'll follow me into a place like that."_

The other Contractor was silent for a moment before he answered, badly concealed worry audible in his voice.

"_You do that. I'll tell Hei and the others about it. Be careful."_

Smiling slightly April started to walk toward the hospital. It was late at night, but she knew that nobody would deny her entrance to her team-mate's room.

She, July, Hei and Misaki had been given access to his room at all times – even outside the strict visiting-hours – thanks to the connections that April and Misaki had.

The dark skinned woman kept her stride even and kept to populated areas as she made her way through the streets, coming closer and closer to the place where her team-mate was recuperating.

_I hope I was right to assume that they won't follow me to the hospital…_

*+*+*

Cursing under his breath, Hei ran down the stairs, taking three or four at once and ignoring the cat running behind him.

"Hei! Hei, stop! What you're doing will bring us all in danger! Hei!"

The assassin knew that Mao was right, but the doubt in the other Contractor's voice convinced him that the man-turned-cat didn't really want to stop him.

When Mao had scratched on the door to the apartment and had told them about the people following April and how she was leading them away from the apartment and towards the hospital in hopes of them giving up, the Chinese man had told Yin to watch July and Mao to call Huang.

The Japanese man would take care of the Dolls while Hei took care of the people who were following April.

From what the cat had told him, they were obviously professional and the assassin knew better than to think that they would give up just because their target had moved to a more protected location.

He wouldn't and while he was the best assassin that the syndicate had to offer and it was doubtful that the three following April had his skills, he didn't want to take the chance of November or April being injured.

So he ran towards the hospital, hoping he wouldn't be too late to prevent most of the damage.

*+*+*

Before he had entered the hospital he had paused for a moment to catch his breath and regain his composure, not wanting to catch the nurses' attention.

He smiled politely into the direction of the people he vaguely knew and quickly made his way towards the room that occupied his lo- that occupied the two MI6 agents.

He could hear the noise of a fight even from the hall and wondered why nobody had come to the room just yet before discarding that thought and carefully opening the door, not wanting to attract attention just yet.

He quickly took in the situation in the room, feeling rage boiling in his veins when he realised what was going on.

Mao had informed him of the people following April and so he knew that the three attackers in the room were the only people around.

The Japanese teen was lying in a pool of his own blood, obviously having been killed by the bullet wound on his chest.

April was standing in front of November, a gun in her hand and obviously trying to protect him from the other two Contractors in the room.

The woman's eyes were glowing, creating a field that protected the man from bullets and both of them were just standing there looking amused and the man was asking April something that the Reaper ignored.

He was wearing clothes that made him recognizable as Li Shengshun and he didn't have anything to hide his face with but he ignored that too.

He didn't plan on letting the two enemy-Contractors leave alive so worrying about revealing his identity was a moot point.

What happened next though, made him pause, disbelief stopping him from entering the room and killing the man and woman.

The man had started to multiply and after half a minute there were six of him in the room, almost more than it could hold.

The woman retreated, pulling her shield away until it only shielded herself and she was out of the way as two copies of the man walked towards April, ignoring the bullets that struck their bodies.

It was then that Hei had enough.

He opened the door completely, walked into the room and grabbed the arm of a copy, killing him in mere seconds as he let his own power loose.

The strange sound of a copy vanishing turned everyone's attention towards him and Hei shot them an angry look in retaliation before he darted towards the woman, ignoring her scream as he grabbed her head and let electricity run through her.

It seemed that her shield couldn't save her from human body-contact.

April let out a relieved laugh, lowering her weapon slightly as she made a comment about him being late.

The assassin ignored her, instead attacking another one of the copies, wanting to use the surprise they felt against them.

He was too late though, the man having regained his composure and attacking him with four copies.

The problem was that Hei didn't know which copy was the real one and so he did his best to kill every one, but a scream distracted him enough that one of the copies managed to bury a small knife in his arm.

It had been April who had screamed and he couldn't help but call her name as he hit the man who had injured him while another managed to grab his wounded arm.

Hei tried to kick him off, but another copy grabbed his free arm and twisted it behind his back while kicking the back of his knees, forcing him down on the floor.

The assassin cursed and tried to move his hand enough to touch either of the two men holding him down, wanting to use his power on them, but they evaded his searching fingers and palms, having witnessed what would happen were they to be touched.

"Finally!" A copy breathed, relieved that they had finally managed to subdue the dark haired man that had interrupted the mission and killed one of his colleagues.

"Damn it!"

The dark skinned woman who was being held down by another copy yelled – annoyed by the fact that she had distracted Hei enough for him to be hurt and caught.

She knew that her wrist was broken, but thankfully she didn't need to use her hands for her powers to work.

Concentrating, a storm suddenly built in the middle of the room and soon after that rain started to pour in the relatively small room, soaking everyone present in it.

The syndicate's assassin immediately used his power, using his wet clothes as a conductor and trying to kill the two copies holding him down, but the two men immediately let go, one shouting in pain as his hands were burned.

In retaliation and before Hei could do anything else, they brutally kicked the Chinese man's head, stunning him and letting the glow that had been around him vanish as he crashed to the floor, darkness threatening to engulf his senses.

Vaguely he heard April call his name, but he was too busy trying to stay conscious to really pay attention to that.

He didn't notice that another one of the clones raised a knife above his body, wanting to dispose of the assassin.

Then there was a strange sound and a familiar voice invaded his dulling senses, calling him back from unconsciousness.

"And what do you think you're doing?"

*+*+*

_Again he was in that deserted, grey city, this time sitting on a park bench and watching a fountain in front of him, the water inside of it a strange, light-grey colour._

"_I'm sorry."_

_A familiar voice, chocked with emotions that were usually hidden chilled him to the bone._

"_I can't do this again. I can't protect the people that I care about. I can't protect you. You were hurt because of me. Maybe people were right in calling me a destroyer."_

_He wanted to protest, to reply, to reassure the other that he neither wanted nor needed to be protected, that he had been hurt because of his own choice and carelessness and that the speaker bore no fault._

_But he couldn't._

_Almost as if he himself had been frozen, he could only listen as the person he had grown to love choke on pain and grief and guilt and hurt himself and November with his good intentions._

"_When you wake up… If… you wake up… You probably won't see me again. I'm sorry. Good… goodbye."_

_A loud crack sounded through the city and November stared down at his own hands which were starting to crumble._

_The shades of grey in front of his eyes were slowly merging together until the world hat turned into a steadily darkening plane of silvery-white until it was almost black._

_He didn't know how long he was simply watching as his surroundings darkened, feeling cold and brittle, like the ice he was capable of creating, when he suddenly heard voices and noises._

_April was screaming._

_Unfamiliar voices were talking._

_Shots._

_More screams._

_And then April screamed again, fear mixing with disbelief and helplessness into a word that let the light return to the colourless world he had found himself in._

"_HEI!"_

*+*+*

His eyes snapped open and for a moment November wondered where he was when everything came rushing back to him.

Shengshun's identity as BK-201, Shé's torture, their rescue and the strange dreams he had had, two of them he was sure were real.

After sorting out these memories, he suddenly sat up and stared at the scene in front of him, vaguely noticing that he was soaked in water.

Hei was lying on the floor, four identical men standing around him, one of them having raised a knife, obviously intending to stab it into November's lover's body.

_And he wants to 'protect' me?_

Fury coursed through his veins as he remembered that dream he had had, and which seemed frighteningly real when he thought about what he knew about the assassin's character.

_He is the one who needs to be protected!_

It was a thought that would make April squeal and Hei glare at him were they to know about his thoughts.

His female team-mate was being held down by another of the identical men and the last one stood over her and it seemed as if he were going to gloat about it.

November ignored all that though, too angry and upset with the whole situation to do anything other than what he had been trained to do.

With a powerful flick of his hand over a puddle of water that had gathered on his blanket, the Contractor activated his power and a small spear of ice imbedded itself into the throat of the man who had been holding the knife above Hei's body.

"And what do you think you're doing?"

He probably should have asked that before killing that copy (which had dissolved into air) but after being in a coma for who knew how long and the rather traumatic experience with his lover's brother, the Brit thought that he deserved to be a little short tempered.

Everyone who could move turned towards him and he could see the Chinese man freeze as his voice rang through the room.

November glared at the men that had obviously attacked two of the people he cared about, knowing that he was going to yell at the two of them for not being careful enough later.

That thought reminded him that he and Hei were going to have a Talk later on, when he was out of the hospital and they weren't in danger of being killed.

Using the shock of these men against them, he quickly plucked the IVs and machines that had been put on and in his body out and carelessly dropped them on the floor, ignoring the way they started to wail and beep because of that.

With another few movements (which were more sluggish and uncoordinated than he would have liked) he shut them down and then shot the men who were threatening his friend and his lover a shark-like smile.

That released them from their stupor and one of the remaining three standing around Hei started to scream loudly, distracting them again which November used to his advantage.

A quick move forward allowed him to grab one of the men's wrists and as soon as his hand touched skin, he used his power, freezing what turned out to be a copy and letting it shatter and vanish.

Now there were only four identical men left and the Brit easily grabbed a glass of water standing on his bedside table and did what he did best.

The man holding April down (and who had tried to drag the dark skinned woman away from the man he now knew to be dangerous) didn't even get the chance to scream as a spike of ice pierced his eye hard enough to break through his skull on the other side.

Without hesitation November dropped the now empty glass and picked up the pitcher still standing on the table.

There was no better way to get rid of after-coma-lethargy than a fight for life and death.

*+*+*

Maybe it was the concussion that he probably had, but somehow Hei felt as though there was a wall of fog in front of his eyes, also dulling his other senses.

Ever since he had heard the voice of the one who hadn't been supposed to wake up, he had been unable to think properly.

It wasn't fair.

He had already said his goodbyes a couple of days ago, had told November of his reasons of staying away, had tried to sever his attachment to the older man in the belief that he wouldn't wake up-

Hei abruptly stopped that train of thought, pushing away the already familiar ache in his chest that accompanied it.

He hadn't wanted to be there when the Brit woke, knowing that it would be easier to sever the ties holding them together while they were apart.

And now November was up and about and saving them from the people Hei had been too weak to fight against.

_How disappointing. When did I start needing saving?_

He was the best assassin that the syndicate had to offer and considering what kind of syndicate it was and the enormous scale of their operations and the difficulty of his missions, it was safe to say that he was one of the best assassins that were currently active.

And now he had been overwhelmed by someone who was probably third-rate agent with powers that Hei should be able to short-circuit without problem.

Frustrated he ignored the fog in front of his eyes and grabbed the leg of one of the men standing near him, using his ability and watching with satisfaction as the body jerked and flailed and finally dissolved into nothing.

The other three jumped away from him, but he managed to hook his foot around another's ankle and bring him to fall.

It was convenient that the man had grabbed a knife before trying to jump away, so Hei grabbed it and threw it quickly at another of the copies, electrifying the one he had managed to bring to the floor.

Now crouching on the floor and having killed two of his attackers (who had also dissolved to nothing), there was only one man left.

One man, who was the real version of the Contractor who had attacked April and who had a gun aimed at Hei's head.

The assassin tensed, ready to lunge at the brown eyed man and try to incapacitate the other agent when suddenly a spike of ice hit the black haired man's chest and killed him.

He chocked for a moment, raising the gun and trying to shoot off one last shot at the assassin crouching in front of him, but he didn't have any luck.

A second shard imbedded itself into the arm holding the weapon and he dropped it before he collapsed on the floor with one last grunt.

Then he dissolved.

Stunned the three Contractors stared at the place where the brown eyed man had just been lying.

"I admit that I didn't expect that, even though I have no idea what's going on. Now if one of you will be so kind to tell me what the hell this was about?"

November's voice cut through the stunned silence, his voice hoarser than usual, reminding the two people left in the room that he had just woken from a coma.

"Later. Now we should call the nurses."

April laughed a little and stood to hug her team-mate tightly, relief clearly visible on her face.

"I'm glad you're alright November."

She then moved towards the door when she noticed the corpses of the Japanese boy and the Caucasian woman on the floor, hesitating when she saw that.

"I guess I should call Misaki too," she sighed finally before exiting the room.

Hei was still kneeling on the floor, one hand having moved to stop the blood-flow of the wound he had gotten while he stared at November with a strange look on his face.

The Chinese man didn't know how he felt, wasn't sure whether he wanted to know.

His initial burst of anger towards the blonde had almost evaporated and now he just felt tired and vulnerable and he ached physically and mentally for the reassurance that the older man could give him, despite knowing that he shouldn't accept it anymore.

*+*+*

Despite feeling the adrenaline that had kept him going vanish and tiredness set in the Brit didn't miss the myriad of emotions cross the younger man's face and frowned a little.

"One could almost think that you aren't glad to see me."

His sharp eyes didn't miss the flinch that went through Hei when he said that and suddenly he had the feeling that the dream he had had was more real than he had first thought.

"You wanted to break it off while I was asleep didn't you?"

There was nothing accusing in November's voice, but his eyes had darkened with anger and the promise of a very thorough talking to later on when the assassin in front of him nodded.

Taking a deep breath the Brit reined in his fury and disappointment and forced his emotions away to think about later.

"Since April, the police and doctors and probably many other people will come soon I suggest that you leave for now. Don't worry though," he added almost as an afterthought. "I'll come and find you after I get better since I doubt that you'll want to visit after what you just told me."

Not that Hei had actually said something, but November was too tired to try and phrase it differently.

"And get your wound looked at, it doesn't look good." Lying back down the MI6 agent didn't even try to hide to worry in his voice and he listened to a door opening and closing, Hei moving too quietly to be heard.

_You handled that really well November,_ a sarcastic voice told the still annoyed Brit, though now he was angrier with himself than with his lover.

And yes, he still considered the Chinese man as his lover even though the dark haired man had admitted to wanting to split up.

November 11 was known for being obnoxious and tenacious and there was no way in hell that he was going to let Hei get away without even a proper reason.

_And if the dream I had really wasn't a dream then maybe I already know the reason for his behaviour._

Which was both flattering and exasperating.

Flattering because apparently the younger man loved him enough to want to protect him and exasperating because the syndicate's agent felt that the blonde couldn't take care of himself.

Hearing a crowd of people come closer the MI6 agent sighed and prepared himself for an exhausting evening, hoping that April had remembered to get a pack of cigarettes.

_The last thing I need is a long and painful death because I forgot to pay my remuneration._

Though it wasn't as though he wasn't already in pain because of what had just happened with Hei.

Sighing again, this time even more deeply, he raised a hand and rubbed his temples.

_I always knew that he was going to be the end of me. It shouldn't surprise me that he feels the same._

Hoping that his hot-tempered words hadn't destroyed any attempt of reconciliation and reassurance, the Brit let his hand fall back on the bed and waited.

That was all he could do for now.

* * *

Okay, I hope you enjoyed this chapter.^^

November was a bit of a bastard at the end but since he just woke up from a coma and was already attacked by people and then was confronted by the fact that Hei wants to break it off that can be excused, right?^^"

By the way, do you want a lemon?

I had planned to write one for the next chapter but I probably suck at that so you might not want one.

I had planned to hint on it in the story and then write the lemon as a one-shot by itself and post it outside of the story.

What do you think?

Yours,

TTF


	21. Chapter 20

A/N: I'm really sorry that this chapter took me this long even though I said I'd update soon! (-_-)

I won't bother you with details of what went wong in RL this time for me to be this late, since it somehow feels like I'm telling empty excuses. -grimaces-

Also, I'm sorry for the short chapter! I wanted to make it longer, but then I thought that you've already been waiting for it long enough.

I was listening to the song 'Comptine d'un autre été' by Yann Tiersen when I wrote the second half of this chapter (and it's probably responsible for the mood in that part ^^") and if you have time it's really worth listening to. (I had it on repeat the whole time ^^")

Now on to the reviews:

iwanMOAR: Again I'm sorry for the long wait! I hope you'll enjoy this chapter since it feels a little different that usual (but maybe that's just me^^"). The waking-up-scene was a little cliché, but I have a good (I hope) explanation for it!^^  
The part with the doors was something I thought she would think and it was one of my favourite parts of the chapter.^^  
I feel a little guilty for making Shé thepsychotic bad guy he ended up as even though I thought him up for this so I'm glad you liked his use.^^

Jenna: I'm happy you like it!^^ This pairing really needs more love and I'm always happy when this story manages to convert people to it!^^  
I was rereading the later chapters to get my muses going again and I noticed once again that I still have a lot to learn about writing so thanks!^^ April is awesome to write since she is a little crazy and childish, but still shrewd and an adult. Hei is a lot harder to write than her (which is frustrating since he is my favourite character).  
Here it is and I hope you'll enjoy it! I'm sorry that the lemon will still be a little off but now it's a sure thing!^^

Lire13: I'm sorry for the long wait and the lemon will still be a little off, but I hope this will tide you over!^^

tigoxgirl: It happens to me too.^^ Sometimes I read a story and think 'who is that?' and then I find out that it was one of the cast all along.^^"  
I hope that the lemon will be up to your expectations (when it comes) and thanks for the offer!^^ I do have thought up an (hopefully reasonable ^^") explanation for November's recovery but that will come a little later.  
And I'm sorry for the late update even though I promised not to take too long! (.)

Kingsofnothing: The lemon is a sure thing now and this chapter gives me the oppertunity to ask about the one-shot-thing again. I hope you'll enjoy this chapter and thanks for the kind words!^^

Nana:I'm sorry that this update didn't come sooner! I hope you'll enjoy it since it feels a little different than usual.^^"

breathlessinside: True, waking up from a coma and immediately seeing your friend and significant other fighting for their lives is sure to put anyone in a bad mood.^^ I'm sorry that you'll have to wait a little for the lemon, but I felt it would be better at another part of the story!

Bakari Born on a Journey: I hate it when that happens. (-_-) You find an awesome series and then there are no stories for it. That really sucks.  
I'm glad you like this story and sorry for the long wait!

Kiara: Thanks! It's a pity that there aren't, isn't it? I'm sorry for the long wait!

And now on to the story!

*+*+*

It had been a week since he had last seen November and Hei dreaded the reunion they would surely have.

He didn't regret or doubt his decision to part ways with the older Contractor but he couldn't deny that he still loved the insufferable MI6 agent.

Sighing slightly the assassin walked to his apartment door and tried to open it, immediately wary when he noticed that it was already open.

Tensing and cursing the fact that the rain that had been falling for the last three days hadn't let up and hid the every sound that could come from the inside of the building, he slowly opened the door and slid inside, not making a sound.

A well-timed boom of thunder hid the noise the door was making as he opened and closed it as he carefully slid a knife out of his shoe and into his hand.

He never went anywhere without a weapon, no matter how small it might be.

Contractor-powers were all well and good and he didn't really need a weapon to kill someone but he had learned the hard way to be rather safe than sorry.

He tensed a little when the light that had been burning in his room suddenly went dark before he could identify the one who had broken into his room and struck before the other one's eyes could get used to the sudden darkness.

He collided with a warm body and forced the other on the floor, knife against his throat – the intruder was definitely male – and ready to slit it at the slightest wrong movement when a strained chuckle in a familiar voice reached his ears.

"Glad to see that you're that happy to see me Hei."

"November?" Horrified he stared down at the older man, his eyes not used enough to the darkness to make out anything but a body.

Realising that he was still holding the knife at the blonde's throat, he quickly recoiled and let the blade slip out of his hand as he flung it to the other side of the room.

"What… what are you doing here?"

Still surprised the Chinese man couldn't take his eyes of the MI6 agent when he realised that he was still kneeling on the older man's probably hurting stomach.

Quickly the assassin moved off the Brit and retreated to the other end of the room when November chuckled mirthlessly.

"I told you that we were going to have a talk didn't I?"

The blonde finally sat up and rubbed his throat a bit to make sure it was still in one piece and slowly Hei's eyes got used enough to the darkness for him to faintly see the older man's features.

"Yes, you did say that. I just didn't expect it to be that soon."

_And without warning in the middle of the night,_ he thought to himself.

The Brit sighed when he heard that and stood to walk towards the younger man, practically feeling his anxiousness.

Hesitating slightly he then sat down beside the Chinese male, close enough for the younger one to feel his warmth, but far enough to keep from touching.

"The first thing I should probably do is apologize," November said lowly, looking straight ahead and not at the man beside him.

"I threw you out after I woke up without waiting for an explanation and while I think that I know at least part of the reason for you wanting to get rid of me, I would like to know everything.

Besides that, you also owe me an explanation about you being a syndicate member."

Hei tensed even more when he heard that, the unspoken _'and BK-201'_ went unsaid but it was heard nonetheless.

Despite that the Chinese man tried to reassure himself.

It was ridiculous – even on the most dangerous missions he was calm and collected.

Just how was it possible that one sentence could make his heart pound and his hands tremble as they hadn't since the first time he had killed someone, late at night after the test the syndicate had given him to see whether he could kill or not was finished?

The older man was a Contractor and would surely see the reasoning behind his decision, he told himself. A member of a criminal syndicate and an MI6 agent in a relationship together was both risky and stupid and he knew that no self-respecting Contractor would insist on continuing it.

The assassin ignored the voice that reminded him that no self-respecting Contractor would let themselves be tortured for another human being and that November had always behaved rather un-Contractor-like when in his presence.

Taking a deep breath to try and calm himself the Chinese man slowly started to talk.

"I told you about my sister, didn't I?" He didn't wait for November to reply, unconsciously pulling his knees to his chest and wrapping his arms around them.

"After we had to leave our… had to leave the others we lived on the streets for some time before we were picked up by the syndicate. I… almost preferred the streets to the horrible training we had to do there.

They took everything we had left away from us and made sure that we lost the last pieces we had of our identities.

Pai… Xîng – she was the only thing I had left so naturally I did everything I could to keep her safe.

It went relatively well. While I couldn't keep her from being wounded at all, I managed to protect her from any life-threatening injuries.

That was, it went well until our mission in South America."

Hei swallowed reflexively, not really knowing how to continue, the memory of what happened – the lack of memories of what happened – still as painful as it had been after waking up after the Heaven's Gate disappeared.

"I made a mistake there."

Closing his eyes as amber eyes and blonde hair flashed through his mind he almost didn't hear November through the guilt and self-loathing he always felt when thinking about that time.

"What mistake did you make?"

The older man's voice was calm, none of the fury he had displayed in the hospital audible and the assassin wondered whether the Brit had let go of his anger of if he was only hiding it.

It was impossible to tell with Contractors and while the older man usually let his guard down in his company, Hei didn't doubt that the blonde was capable of lying to him.

"Amber. I made the mistake of allowing Amber to get under my skin. You should know her, she was an MI6 agent, but I don't know which name she had in your organisation."

November nodded and replied slowly.

"Her name was February. She was the best agent that the MI6 had before she betrayed us several years ago.

We thought that she had betrayed us for that syndicate that you're a part of, but it seems that not even you know about her motives."

The blonde sighed and leaned slightly against Hei, feeling exhausted mentally and physically.

Recovering from being in a coma hadn't been easy, but the doctors had told him that he had been surprisingly fortunate.

Maybe it was because he had always kept himself in excellent shape or maybe it was because he was a Contractor with ice-powers, but they had been astounded that he had recovered that quickly.

He had heard them mutter to each other that it should be impossible for him to be that healthy and in such a good shape after what he had gone through, but while it was interesting to hear it was of no real consequence to him.

The only thing that he had been able to think about while in physical therapy was getting better so that he could finally have that talk with Hei that he had promised the younger man.

And now they were having it.

"At first I didn't trust her. I also didn't want to trust her. I only wanted to protect Pai and keep the two of us alive, but after some time she managed to get under my skin. She made sure I ate and slept enough, she smoothed over my fights with Carmine and she tried to get me to behave more… human I guess."

The Chinese man chuckled almost bitterly.

"After I met Carmine again a few months ago she told me that I was the most brutal and merciless member of their team and that not even she with her obeisance or Pai and Amber with their emotional coldness could come close to my cold-heartedness.

Some time before we left for South America, after a mission, people started to call me 'The Black Reaper' and Amber told me they called me that because I always wore black and killed as silently and unexpectedly as the real thing."

Absently Hei laid his head on the older man's which was resting on his shoulder and stared at his hands.

"Because I didn't have powers and she couldn't use hers we bonded, I suppose. She was more human – or could pretend to be more human – than everyone else I knew. Which were only Contractors and cold-blooded humans like me so that didn't mean much I suppose."

The assassin quieted, lost in thought about what he had told the older man and wished that the words his mouth was forming didn't hurt him as much as they did.

"Who is Carmine? I know that she was a CIA agent, but nothing else."

November's voice was barely audible, even in the silence between them and for a moment Hei wished that the MI6 agent would just fall asleep and forget about everything that he wanted the Chinese man to talk about.

How was he going to tell the blonde that he had killed the woman he was talking about?

"You probably know her under a different name. She was called Havoc in the CIA."

The Brit leaning against him tensed and the assassin closed his eyes, wondering what the older man was going to do next.

"I'm sorry."

A tan hand grabbed his own one and Hei had to suppress the urge to squeeze it tightly, his fingers closing around the other man's for a second before loosening again.

"You did what you had to do. She was a dangerous Contractor of an enemy-organisation that had escaped confinement," Hei shrugged.

November snorted slightly, immediately seeing through the younger man's false bravado and tightened the hold he had on the dark haired man's hand.

"That doesn't mean it doesn't hurt," the blonde murmured, leaning more of his weight against the assassin.

"Even if it hurts I didn't treat her any better. Before I took her to the Gate I tortured her for information she could have had about Pai and Amber, but she lost her memories of that time just like me.

I took her to the Gate despite her initial protests in the hope that she might remember something, but it was useless. She didn't remember anything I wanted to know. It just reawakened her old demons."

Hei could feel the guilt that he had managed to push away in these last few weeks and months return and gnaw at him as if angry for being ignored for so long.

"She did get something back," November murmured, disliking the expression that now covered the younger man's face. "Her powers returned to her and she could have killed you and me and everyone being there if she had wanted to.

Had she hated or resented you for the things you did, why didn't she attack you?"

The Brit raised his free hand and turned the assassin's head towards him, for the first time deliberately meeting the Chinese man's eyes.

"You have the bad habit of feeling responsible for everyone around you despite the fact that most of the time they are creating their own misfortune. You can't save everyone and you shouldn't try doing that because it will destroy you if you don't accept that sometimes you are helpless."

The MI6 agent took a deep breath and pressed their foreheads together.

"Tell me what happened then."

Hei closed his eyes but didn't retreat, letting the older man support his weight despite the fact that he wanted to stop relying on November.

"I started to trust her. She wormed her way into my heart and made herself a person I wanted to keep safe, like Pai was."

The Chinese man pressed his forehead harder against the Brit's, almost as if he wanted to transfer his memories to the older one.

"She and Pai got along well to and after some time they started to take long walks together, talking about things.

Sometimes they stumbled across enemies, but they never had any trouble dealing with them.

And sometimes they even ran across corpses of allies. When that happened they would behave strangely for a while before settling down again.

I never understood them and maybe that was the cause of everything."

Hei quieted as he tried to force the words describing the following happenings out of his mouth, but he didn't quite succeed.

Opening his eyes he stared at the ice-blue pair returning his gaze calmly and swallowed thickly.

"A few months after they started their walks, Amber gave me and Carmine orders to separate. She said that a messenger of the syndicate had given her four messages to deliver to other places and that our unit would split up for that purpose.

That was the last time I saw her and Pai.

We split up and shortly after that the Heaven's Gate vanished. It was pure luck that I was already out of the blast-zone by that time."

This time the assassin retreated and turned his gaze away.

"Do you see where I'm going with this? I wanted to protect Pai and Amber and now one is dead and the other betrayed me.

The same happened to my brother and sister-in-law. One dead, the other a traitor.

Or Kenji, who protected me. Or Nick, who vanished in the Hell's Gate.

I could list other people too and I'm tired of it.

I'm tired of letting people get close and then losing them to either death or betrayal."

And the thought that November, April, Yin, Mao, Huang and July could die or be otherwise harmed just by staying close to him was almost unbearable.

July and Yin, who didn't say much, but offered silent support and a listening ear.

April and Mao, who tried to lighten the mood of their team-mates any way they could even if it was by being annoying.

Huang, who yelled and complained and hated Contractors but who still had their backs, who had warmed up to them and who kept Hei's relationship with November a secret.

And November, who had gotten closer to him than anyone ever since Pai died and whose death would completely and utterly destroy him.

A low chuckle ripped him from his thoughts and the Chinese man stared at the Brit who shook his head slightly, an odd smile on his face.

"I don't know whether I should be insulted or flattered, but for now I will go with flattered and annoyed."

November shifted so he was kneeling in front of the younger Contractor and gently cradled the dark haired man's face in his hands, forcing Hei to look at him.

"Tell me who I am."

Surprised the assassin stared at the older man, not sure where the MI6 agent was going with this, but fearing that his words hadn't reached the blonde at all.

He reached up and caught November's wrists, sitting up slightly as he started to protest.

"You didn't listen to me! I'm telling you that I don't want to lose someone else I care about! What do you think the Mi6 is going to do to you when they find out that you have been seeing a criminal?

And they are going to find out!

November, let's stop this and just-"

He was interrupted before he could finish his sentence when the Brit pulled his face closer towards his own and spoke firmly, his voice not allowing any argument.

"That wasn't what I asked. Who am I Hei? Just answer the question."

The assassin took a deep breath, wanting to protest but knowing that it was useless.

The older man would just continue to question him like this until he answered.

"You are November 11 also known as Jack Simon," he finally answered.

The blonde nodded calmly and then asked another question.

"What am I?"

Confused the younger one stared at him, not really knowing where his- his _former_ lover was going with this.

"You are a Contractor," he said slowly. "And an MI6 agent," was added almost as an afterthought.

The Brit nodded again.

"That's right. I am November 11, the best agent that the MI6 has. Hei, do you remember when we first fought against each other?" The blonde waited for the younger man's confirmation before he continued.

"We fought against each other evenly and hadn't one of your team-mates – Huang I believe – helped you I would have arrested you without problems. I know that April helped me," he added when he noticed the irritated look on Hei's face, "and you would have fought me, but I had you frozen to the street. Did you think that I needed protection then?"

The assassin closed his eyes, finally realising what the older man wanted to say.

"At that time I wanted to strangle you, tear you to pieces, cook you with vegetables and serve you to Mao as a snack," the Chinese man replied dryly, feeling annoyed that he had been playing into the older one's hands.

November smirked, glad to see that his lover – he refused to think of Hei as anything else despite the younger man's efforts – had regained some of his spirit.

"Exactly. As callous as it sounds, I neither need nor want a protector. What I want is a partner who will have my back in a fight, someone whom I can trust and who will both keep me in line and push me further.

And I want – need – that someone to be you."

November took a deep breath, not wanting to lose his nerves despite feeling his stomach turn when he looked into Hei's wide, surprised eyes.

"When we had that talk after our fight with the Yakuza you asked me what happened to make me trustworthy. I guess now is the time to answer that question.

I am not saint. In fact I'm not even a good person. I can still kill and lie to people; I can torture them for information and everything else that is required of me.

The only thing that changed is that some people are exceptions to that. The thought of hurting July and April makes me sick and I know that I would rather die that harm them.

The other exception is you."

Hei continued to look at the older man, not having expected November to say something like that.

The assassin was aware that the MI6 agent was a formidable fighter, but Pai had been too and she was most likely dead after having been betrayed by one of her friends.

He also knew that the other Contractor wasn't a person who looked for others for protection. The ice-blue eyed man knew his capabilities and knew better than to underestimate his enemies and allies – he wasn't the best MI6 agent because of his looks.

He had also known that the Brit cared about his team and he had known that the blonde had to care for him too – the older one had to, to let himself be tortured like that, but he knew that the blonde didn't usually talk about his feelings.

Hei was the same.

He was uncomfortable with verbally expressing what he felt, having trained himself for such a long time to not feel anything at all and never having had someone who would be interested in his state of mind anyway.

Because of that it was a shock that the usually playful but guarded man talked like that.

"In therapy, when I was trying to prove to the doctors that I was fine, I realised that I never told you these things so I thought that I should rectify that.

You are probably the only person on earth I can't lie to. I can lie to April and July, I can lie to my superiors, I can lie to anyone I need to but not you.

Every time I tried, something inside of me stopped me and I ended up telling the truth."

November closed his eyes for a moment, remembering several incidents in which he had wanted to lie but had been unable to bring himself to do so.

The MI6 agent felt nearly sick with nervousness when he thought about what he was going to say next and cursed the fact that the younger man could make him lose his composure like that.

"When your brother caught us and I was accusing you of using me you told me that you loved me, remember?"

Hei flinched at both the reminder of what had happened with Shé and his love-confession, though he only remembered the latter vaguely.

Taking the younger man's discomfort as agreement, the Brit continued, his voice low and soft.

"I realised then that I never told you that I loved you too." The older man moved one of his hands to cover the assassin's mouth, stopping the syndicate member from saying anything.

"It was unfair of me not to tell you as soon as I realised it. I was the one to initiate this relationship, making you risk your life just because I felt something for you and wanted to see where we could go."

The blonde shook his head in disgust as he remembered how he had denied feeling something deeper than attraction for the younger man and how he had ignored any and all hints that told him that there was something more to Shengshun than an eccentric exchange-student.

He was surprised when the hand he had used to keep his lover quiet was wrenched away by an indignant looking Hei.

"Don't make me sound like a victim here November!" The anger in the Chinese man's voice was practically palpable and the Brit winced when he heard it.

It hadn't been his intention to irritate the younger man – in fact he had wanted to calm him down.

"You didn't know what you were asking for when you asked me to become your lover and neither did you force me to. I knew what I was getting into so don't you dare to imply that I didn't when it was you who had no idea what he was going on!"

For a moment November could only stare at the younger man before smiling almost bitterly.

"And that is what's bothering you now, isn't it?" Sharply Hei looked at the older man, not having expected that.

"You say that you can't bear to lose anyone else you care about, but that is only part of it, isn't it? You also feel guilty about getting me into a dangerous situation where a violent death would be the least of my worries."

The MI6 agent knew that he had hit the bull's-eye when the other Contractor looked away suddenly, unable to return the blonde man's gaze anymore.

November grabbed the assassin's chin with the hand that had still been cradling his face and turned the dark haired one's head back towards him, refusing to let the younger man avoid his gaze.

"Let me tell you something Hei," the Brit's voice was now soft and gentle, the affection in his kingfisher-blue eyes making Hei's chest ache.

"I am not going to let you go as easily as you probably think. I have stalked you for weeks before I was even in love with you so you should be able to imagine what I'm capable of now that I know about my and your feelings.

Whether you love me or not, whether you want me to or not, I'm going to stay right beside you every step of the way you are going to take, wherever it might lead, so you should know that even if you stop being my lover I'm not going to let go of you."

November took a deep breath after having said that, both anxious and relieved to have finally told Hei everything.

The assassin instead just sat in front of him, an unreadable expression on his face, obviously thinking about what the older man had told him.

Slowly he leaned forward, leaning his weight against the taller man, gripping the blonde's upper arms tightly.

"I'm tired. I don't want to fight with you anymore," he murmured, taking in the familiar smell of tobacco, cologne and something uniquely November.

The dark haired Contractor felt something relax inside of him that had been coiled tightly enough to suffocate.

For the first time in weeks was he able to breathe properly and it was an incredible feeling.

He felt November's body go limp and before he knew it he was lying on top of the Brit's chest, the older man's arms around him and both of them trying to untangle their legs from each other.

"Does that mean you have given up?" The MI6 agent's voice was cautious, obviously not really knowing what to think of the younger one's reply and Hei couldn't help but smirk slightly as he raised himself above the Brit, and gently pressed their lips against each other.

"Yes, I have," he murmured against the older man's lips, feeling the exhaustion of the last few days finally catch up with him.

Before the kiss could develop into something less chaste, he let himself fall back onto the blonde – ignoring the slight way November groaned when his weight hit him – and closed his eyes.

For the first time in weeks he felt like he could sleep without nightmares and so he let tiredness carry him over into unconsciousness.

*+*+*

This is it for this chapter and I'm really sorry that it's short and strange. (.)

On another note, I wanted to ask about the lemon. It's now a sure thing that I'm going to write one, but do you want it to be part of the story or in a seperate one-shot?

I wanted to put it into a one-shot, but if I do that it will lose part of its mood and effect so I wanted to ask what you want me to do.  
What do you think?

As always, thanks for reading and I hope you enjoyed it!

Yours,

TTF


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